Mann Outta Time
by DeGenerateVamp
Summary: The last they remember, they were fighting in an on going war between BLU's and RED's. Four members of BLU gets Rifted as well as the RED Spy. Secrets revealed, the unimaginable happens and new adventures await these five men who's main goal to start with is to find a way to get back home.
1. Chapter 1

_Author's Note:_

 _This is the first time I've ever tried writing a TF2 story but I do hope you like it._

 _The characters within this story are BLU Medic, BLU Pyro, BLU Engineer, BLU Scout and RED Spy as well as several OC's._

 _If you have any questions, please ask. Any and all comments are welcome. :)_

vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv

"Vhere are ve?"

Red Spy opened his eyes, the sun's bright rays temporarily blinding him. He sat up and once his vision returned he wished it hadn't. There he sat along with four other people, the problem with that is they were all from the BLU team. "Ah Merde..." he groaned, placing his head within his hands, shaking it side to side. "Of all de luck..."

"Spah!" BLU Engineer hollered out, grabbing his Frontier Justice, pointing it at Spy as he cocked it, getting ready to fire.

"VAIT! Don't Fire Zat!" BLU Medic screamed, throwing his hands up to emphasize his words.

Engineer's eyebrows lifted in confusion as he looked over at Medic, gun still aimed at the sitting spy. "Why the hell not? It's Spah... He's gonna..."

"He's not going to do anyzhing..." Medic interrupted, "und if you haven't noticed... Ve're not at ze Badlands anymore, vhich means..."

"E ill I..." came a mumbling voice behind them.

"Zat is correct, Pyro... Vizout ze base..."

"No respawn..." Engineer concluded, earning a nod from Medic. "Dag nabbit... How did we get here? How do we get back? Where the sam hill are we?" he asked, finally lowering his gun.

Spy exhaled loudly, a breath he didn't realize he was even holding until the weapon had been lowered. Once he cleared his throat and composed himself to trust his own voice he pointed out to the others, " Gentleman... If I may... It appears ze Scout is unconscious."

All heads turned, their eyes focusing on BLU Scout.

"Uh e eh?" Pyro asked, tilting his head to the side.

Medic knelt down, placing two fingertips to Scout's neck, checking for a pulse. "Nein... He's alive." He stated, answering Pyro's question then stood up and lifted his medigun, pointing it at Scout before flipping the switch. Confusion riddled his brow when the medipack didn't fire up. Medic flipped the switch a few more times, growing aggravated before finally lowering the medigun down then slipping the pack from his back, carefully placing it on the ground.

After watching Medic for several minutes as he was looking over the medipack and trying to figure out what went wrong, Engineer walked over and sat next to Medic offering his help which Medic accepted in earnest. "Zhere doesn't seem to be anyzhing vrong vith it... I don't understand vhy it's not vorking..."

"Well, apparently there's somethin' wrong... It's just gonna take some time ta figure it out..." Engineer responded, taking off his hard hat and scratching his head in confusion. From what he was seeing, Medic was correct in his assessment. There didn't look to be anything broken or out of place and it had just been charged before they ended up here. A mystery worth looking into, in his eyes.

While the two men were trying to fix the medigun, Spy quietly moved over towards Scout until he was stopped by an ax dropping down in front of him. Looking up, Spy noticed the defensive stance Pyro had taken between him and Scout. "I'm not going to hurt ze boy... You have my word..." Spy actually heard Pyro growl in warning before stepping to the side but keeping a very close eye on the master of disguise.

"Scout... Scout..." Spy called out gently, patting the young man's cheek while doing so, but getting no response. "Eugene, wake up boy..." he tried again.

There was a hush that fell over the small group as all eyes turned towards Spy; Pyro tilted his head slightly in confusion.

"Vhat did you jus call him?" Medic questioned, looking just as lost as Pyro and now Engie as well.

Spy glanced up at the three pairs of eyes watching him before shaking his head and putting his attention back onto the young man. "Eugene open your eyes." He continued. This went on for another ten minutes before Scout started showing any movements on trying to listen.

A whimper was heard before Scout started moving his head from side to side, his body squirming as he came to. "Ow..." he groaned then started slowly sitting up, reaching his hand up to rub the back of his head. "Did someone catch the number of that damn train?" he groaned again then opened his eyes. The first face he saw was one of a masked man. Worse than that... a masked man from RED team. "What The Hell?!" he hollered out, scurrying backwards a few feet before bumping into something solid. He looked up, seeing yet another masked man, this one a bit scarier but on a good note; this was his scary looking teammate. "What are you waiting for? Set his ass on fire!"

Pyro cocked his head, looking down at the youngest team member then shook his head.

"What?! Why the hell not?" Scout asked, flabbergasted. "I mean geez... It's Spy... He's..."

"Ze vun who voke you up und if you vould shut up for a moment und look avound..." Medic interrupted already wishing the young man was still unconscious.

"We ain't in Kansas anymore, kid..." Engineer finished, shaking his head. "And the Yellow Brick Road has disappeared."

A mumbled, yet still loud sound of laughter filled the air. Heads turned towards Pyro who had his hands on his stomach, his body shaking with the laughter that could still be heard.

"Ummm... Okay... I guess the mumbling psycho finds that... umm... funny..." Scout pointed out, now moving several feet away from his teammate.

"Nein. He's not psycho... He's..." Medic looked over at Pyro who was still laughing then sighed audibly, "Vell... Mayve a little psycho."

"Seriously Doc?" Scout questioned, earning a simple shrug from Medic as his answer.

Several minutes passed before Pyro calmed down giving the other men time to look around and scan the area.

"Vell... Ve can not stay here. Ve need to move if ve plan to stay alive." Medic finally pointed out, gathering his things.

Heavy sighs and groans were heard as the others followed suit, each one wondering where or even which way to head to find any sort of life and or most importantly, food.


	2. Chapter 2

Hours upon hours of walking in moderate silence, rumbles started being heard throughout the group as well as the deep, raspy breathing coming from Pyro.

Medic cut his eyes over to Pyro, watching what he could see of the rise and fall of the fire burner's chest and listening closely to his breathing. Concern filled his every being before he finally stopped. "Pyro, take off ze mask."

Pyro quickly shook his head and started backing away when Medic started towards him.

"Pyro..."

The other three men stopped walking as well, watching the scene before them as Pyro started shaking his head more vigorously now which in turn caused him to lose his balance, sending him down to the unforgiving ground below. He started mumbling so fast that nobody, including Medic, could understand him.

Medic's eyes grew wide, quickly joining Pyro on the ground, not even a foot away from him. "Pyro, please, take off ze mask... You vill be able to breath better." he said, almost pleadingly.

Pyro still would not listen as he continued to shake his head, whimpering.

"Für die liebe Gottes! Es wird ihnen helfen, den atem!"

Pyro's head jerked up, his big thick goggles staring straight up at Medic before he mumbled out softly, "uh um iheah."

Medic's eyebrows lifted, getting quiet momentarily before he responded, "Warum denkst du das?"

"Kah ah ahm." Pyro answered sadly.

"Das ist egal. Sie müssen oder sind sie nur noch schlimmer."

Pyro lowered his head, his raspy breath exhaling heavily. "Ah an oo ih."

"Zhen let me help..." Medic offered, slowly lifting his hands then paused be asking for reassurance, "May I?"

Pyro nodded slowly, leaning closer to Medic as every muscle in his body tensed more so than they already were.

Taking a deep, calming breath, Medic reached for the bottom of the gas mask and as gently as possible, took the mask off the trembling fire starter. "Zhere... Zat vasn't so bad... Vas it?"

Gasps were heard throughout the group who had up until now stayed quiet, waiting patiently to see what was going to transpire between the two men.

Medic turned his head, glaring at the group, causing them to recoil and lower their heads. He turned back to look at Pyro, smiling as he had done so. "Don't mind zem... Zey are all Dummkopfs."

Pyro grinned, keeping his head down low. "Can't blame them... Told you I was hideous."

The older man felt his heart clench, hearing the sadness in the other man's voice. "Nein... You are not hideous... But iv you don't mind me asking... Vhat happened?"

Pyro started chewing his bottom lip, glancing up at Medic. "You already know... You were there Dr. Gottmund."

Medic's eyes grew huge, mouth dropping open in astonishment. "It... It can't be... You vere ze junge."

"The one you helped all those years ago... The only reason I'm alive today is because of you... If you hadn't of been there..."

The Doctor reached out, placing his hand on Pyro's gloved one. "I did vhat any decent person vould have done. It's in ze past. Now... You need to get out of ze suit too... Even zhough ze mask is off, you could still overheat."

Pyro sighed, looking over at the rest of the group then nodded before he proceeded to take off his gloves then the rest of his asbestos-lined suit.

Getting up, Medic walked over to the other three men. "If anyvun of you says anyzhing zat hurts him... I vill hurt you in return... Got it?" He growled, his voice low enough for Pyro not to overhear him in his shuffling but his voice and the glare he was casting them all holding all the promise of his words.

"Geez Doc... We got it... We got it..." Scout quickly confirmed, raising his hands in the air in mock surrender.

"Ze boy's right. We won't say anything to ze mumbling, extra crispy freak." Spy smirked, earning a quick smile from Scout and dual glares from Medic and Engineer.

"Spah... If he don't hurt you, I will." Engineer said, waving his wrench at the masked man who in turn raised his hands just as Scout had done.

"It was a joke, gentlemen."

"Und not a funny vun eizzer... vun more like zat und I will have no problem slowly sawing off your head und using it as a chamber pot." Medic warned still glaring at Spy.

Spy's eyes widened, his adam's apple bobbing as he gulped. "I apologize."

"What are you apologizing for?" Came a voice behind the men, causing them all to jump in surprise.

Medic quickly composed himself as he turned around, smiling. "Oh nuhzhing... Ve vere just talking." He answered sweetly.

Pyro raised an eyebrow then looked at the others around, judging their expressions when Spy spoke up. "On ze contrary, dear friend, we were explaining to ze Doctor zat we were merely in shock zat you had actually taken off ze mask, nothing more."

The fire starter simply nodded, not really believing the Spy then turned to Medic, "I'm thirsty..." He announced, biting on his bottom lip again then added, "and a little hungry too."

Medic sighed, looking around the area they had stopped at then looked over at Engineer before asking, "Vell... Got any ideas?"

"We could always use the cactus juice to keep us hydrated..." Engie pointed out then twisted his lips in thought. "Not sure about food though..."

"I can handle zat." Spy offered then turned towards Scout. "Find some wood we can use for a fire. Pyro, bring your ax an' follow me."

Scout did a quick nod before taking off to complete the chore assigned to him.

Pyro, on the other hand looked over at Medic, not sure if he should be listening to the enemy Spy or not.

Distrust was apparent in his eyes, his hands tightening and loosening. "Very vell..." Medic finally said before looking back at Pyro. "See if you can help him But if he does anyzhing... ANYzhing zat upsets you... You have my permission to Kill him." he concluded, glaring over at Spy with a tight, menacing grin.

Pyro nodded, grabbed his ax then went to stand in front of Spy. "Ready?"

vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv

 _German to English Translations by Google Translate:_

 _Für die liebe Gottes! Es wird ihnen helfen, den atem! - For the love of God! It will help you breath!_

 _Warum denkst du das? - Why do you think that?_

 _Das ist egal. Sie müssen oder sind sie nur noch schlimmer. - That does not matter. You need to or you are only going to get worse._


	3. Chapter 3

"Wow! That... Was... Awesome!" Scout hollered out, licking his lips. "Never knew rattlesnake could taste so good... Almost like chicken and you all know how much I Love Chicken! I could eat..."

"Scout! Ve get it!" Medic shouted, interrupting the younger man. "Now... If you don't mind... Shut ze hell up so ve can finish eating vithout hearing your insufferable chatter."

"Rude Doc... Just... Rude." Scout pouted then quickly closed his mouth when Medic's eyes slit.

"Leave ze boy alone... He's just happy to have finally gotten some food in him an' it's better zhis way than how he was earlier today." Spy pointed out, smiling over at Scout.

"Zat's debatable..."

"Ya know... Maybe we should get to know each other a little better... We know a little about why Doc here is protective over Pyro... But... Spah... Why in Sam Hill are you so defensive when it comes to Scout?" Engineer asked, looking over at the masked man.

Spy looked up, all eyes on him then shrugged. "Someone apparently needs to."

"What?! I don't..."

"Hush boy..." Engie said, holding up his hand. "I don't think that's the only reason... You were worried when he was unconscious earlier..."

"Aww... You were worried? Wait... Huh?"

Spy groaned, shaking his head then looked up at their small group. "Very well... You want to talk? Zhen let's talk... How about we start by hearing ze rest about ze Medic and ze Pyro."

Biting on his bottom lip, seemingly a nervous trait that Pyro has, he glanced over at Medic who was already looking at him in return. "You don't have to, if you don't want to." The older man told him but letting the choice by Pyro's.

Pyro nodded then lowered his head, contemplating before finally looking up at the rest of the group. Taking a deep breath he started his story. "When I was younger... Around ten... I lived in an orphanage... Even then I loved playing with matches... I was in the basement playing, like usual, and something fell... I looked up and all of a sudden, pain... I had burnt my finger and threw the match... The place went up in flames... When I tried to get out... I caught on fire too... I finally got outside and this guy was running towards me... He covered me up and smothered out the fire... I don't remember too much after that except waking up in a white room and the same man was asleep in the chair next to my bed... When he woke up he smiled at me and told me his name was Dr. Gottmund which I thought was pretty fitting... See, his name in German means God-Protector... He took care of me for a while until I was healed and then he helped me by sending me off to the states but not before giving me a new name."

"Blayze Furnell." Medic answered, smiling over at Pyro.

"But... Why did he ship you off? You were only ten..." Scout pointed out, seemingly intrigued by the fire starter's story.

"He had a better chance to live und stay alive in ze states zan in Germany... Even on his own." Medic answered matter-of-factly.

"Wow... What happened then?" Scout asked.

"When I got here nobody really wanted to come near me... Until... This lady took pity on me and took me in... She schooled me at home and when I was twenty three she passed onto a better place and I was alone once again... Few years after that BLU hired me..." Pyro finished, shrugging his shoulders.

"Well... Zat was interesting..." Spy noted, almost feeling guilty for asking. He turned his attention to Engineer. "What about you my hard hatted friend. What's your story?"

Engineer sat there for a moment before he shrugged. "Ain't much to tell... Name's Dell Conagher... I have two beautiful women in my life..."

"Ha ha ha... You dog..." Spy laughed, of course thinking the worst.

Dell lifted an eyebrow at the interruption then continued, "My wife, Irene and my baby girl, Rose. Used to work at the University there... Things kinda happened then BLU approached me with their offer and after talkin' to Irene about it all, I ended up accepting and working for 'em not long after that." He concluded, scratching his bald head.

"Man... That was kinda lame... With all your gizmos and you give us that?" Scout asked, scrunching up his nose and before Dell could respond, the younger of the two continued, "Eugene Anderson... Make fun of the name and I'll kick your ass... Youngest of eight boys. Ma had her hands full with us... Dad left when I was about six, I guess... Ma said he didn't have a choice... He was off saving the world and shit like that... As a kid, I thought it was cool as hell... My Dad, a superhero or whatever... Boston wasn't a great place for kids but I learned how to take care of myself quick... Love Baseball! But they kicked me off the team... Said I was too rough. Then BLU found me, made their offer and I was like, Oh Hell Yeah! Told Ma about it... She didn't like it but she let me decide..." Scout smiled a toothy smile then took a bite of his leftover cactus.

"You're pere is not a superhero..." Spy said softly, looking at the ground. "But he did leave for a good reason... He left to keep his family safe."

"What? How the hell would you know?" Eugene blurted out, anger flared in his eyes.

Blayze reached over putting his hand on Eugene's shoulder, the look in his eyes calming the younger man down.

A heavy sigh was heard, drawing the attention back to Spy. "Your pere's name in Michael, is it not? Michael Anderson to be more exact..."

"Well... Yeah but that..."

"He married your mere, Elizabeth, after only knowing her for a few short months... zhen months later, you were born... All six pounds, twelve ounces of you."

Scout's eyes widened not wanting to believe what his mind was putting together. "No..." "Let me finish, S'il vous plaît..." Scout got quiet, shaking his head from side to side. "Merci... Your pere loved you and your muzer more zhen anyzhing... An' your bruzers as well... But ze line of work he was in... Well... It became dangerous... Certain people was hunting him down which put not only himself but his entire family in harm's way... So, he did ze only zhing he could. He left an' moved overseas. He changed his name to Amoun Lapine an' many years later he was offered a job... He took it an' when ze battle began... He saw his son for ze first time in twelve years..." Spy sighed before reaching up to take off his mask then looked up at Eugene. "I've never stopped loving you or your muzer."

"Bullshit! NO! BULLSHIT! If... If you're trying to say you're my father then... Then prove it!" Scout hollered out, his heart and mind being pulled in different directions. "PROVE IT!" he screamed.

The others looked away from Scout to each other, to Spy then back to Scout before Spy stood up and took out his cigarette case, opened it and took out a picture, handing it to Eugene.

The younger boy snatched the picture, glaring at Spy then looked down at it. It was a picture of him, his mother and... his father... when he was only six years old. The edges were a little roughed up but still looked in good shape.

"Your muzer made sure I had zat when I told her what was going on an' why I had to leave."

"But... My Dad wasn't French..."

"Non... But a spy has to adapt where he is and quickly. I was zhere for twelve years, Eugene."

"I... This... I need some time." Eugene said softly before walking away from the group to be alone.

Once Eugene was far enough away, Medic turned to Spy. "How? How could you keep killing your own junge over und over again?"

Spy sighed heavily before answering, "Respawn... I knew he wouldn't die because of zat an' if you have never noticed before... It's rarely me zat kills him... You, Engie an' ze Piss man are my main concern."

Dell saw the sour expression cross Medic's face and decided to intervene in on the conversation. "So... Medic... We have a last name for ya... What about your first name? I mean... Since we're all gettin' ta know each other here."

"Rein." Medic answered simply, finally taking his eyes away from Spy.

"Alright... Let's see... Rein, Blayze, Eugene, of course me and Spy? Do we call you Michael or Amoun?"

Spy waved his hand in the air dismissively and stated in his snobbish accent, "I do not care... Call me Spy... Michael... or Amoun... It is up to you."

During the current conversation, Blayze quietly got up and snuck off, only Rein actually noticed he had left but didn't say anything, knowing where the younger man was heading.

"Hey... Need a friend?" Blayze asked quietly, not wanting to startle the younger man as he approached.

"What? No... No, I'm fine... Just peachy freakin' keen!" Eugene answered, his voice getting louder with each sentence. "I mean... What the Hell? How can he just throw down a bombshell like that and expect me to be okay with it? Expect me to even believe him? What am I supposed to do? Forget that he ran out on us? True, it was to protect us but still... And then he's been fighting against me for over a year now?! How messed up is that? He's killed me! I mean yeah... I've killed him too but it's different... I didn't know... He did! Am I just supposed to run to him with open arms and cry out that I've missed him and forgive him? I don't think so... Why didn't Ma ever tell me the truth? Why do I have to find out now? And what if he's lying? What if he doctored the picture up somehow? I haven't seen pictures of Dad since he left. Ma burned 'em all... She said it was to cover his secret identity cause he was a super hero... Yeah right... But he is a Spy... He could be lying... They're great at that." He finally concluded, flopping to the ground in an exhausted heap.

Blayze took a deep breath. He sat down next to Eugene, gathering his thoughts on what to say that would be supportive yet also answering some of Eugene's open questions. "I don't think he's expecting you to just forgive and forget... It's something that's going to take some time. As for your Ma... If she knew he was a spy and that her boys could be in danger then yeah... That's probably why all his pictures disappeared and why she lied about why... She was just protecting you and your brothers and still is. He may be a spy but I really believe he's telling you the truth."

Scout looked up and over at Blayze, then lowered his head, quiet for a moment before finally nodding, "Yeah... You're probably right but what about him killing me? Does he get some kind of sick pleasure out of seeing me die?" he asked, his expression becoming troubling.

"Respawn... He knew you wouldn't die and as he told us just a little bit ago... It rarely was him that killed you... His main focus was Medic, Engie, and Sniper on the killing that is." Blayze explained before laying back, looking up at the stars.

"Hmm... Damn... Guess you're right again..." The younger man said with a sigh then joined Blayze, looking up into the night sky. "Pyro... Do you think we've been abducted? You know... Like little green men and all that shit."

"No... I think we're still on earth but... Oh, I don't know... It feels different... Maybe something happened to one of Engie's teleporters... Maybe it blew up and poof, we're here... It is weird though... We haven't seen any other humans and why only us? What about the rest of the teams?"

"I don't know..." Eugene said softly then quickly sat up, startling Blayze in the process. He then turned to look at the older teammate, "You know what? You're pretty awesome! Especially now that I can understand you without all that mumbling." he said, words quickly just falling out of his mouth as his hands flailed about. "No offense but I always thought you were a little... Ya know... Not the brightest crayon in the box but... You're like a different person altogether without the mask... It's pretty cool." He finished, smiling.

"Umm... Thank You?" Blayze said, looking a little confused. He shook his head to clear the rambling away before looking back up at Eugene. "You about ready to head back or do you want..."

"We can head back and thanks man... Ya know, for listenin' and all... You didn't have to but... Thanks."

Blayze smiled as he went to stand up. "You're Welcome... And Eugene... Anytime... I mean it."

Eugene smiled then both men walked back to rejoin the others.

Rein looked up, his body showing the tenseness that was running through him. He focused his attention on Blayze, his expression asking all and the fire starter just simply nodded. Rein's body seemed to melt as all tension started to leave him. "It's getting late... Mayve ve should try und get some sleep." He proposed, laying down on the ground but staying to where he could keep an eye on the rest of their small group.

"Sounds like a good idea. Night ya'll..." Dell said, agreeing then laying down himself.

"Bon nuit."

"Blayze... Vake up mein junge... Time to go." Rein said softly, gently shaking the younger man's shoulder and looking around in confusion. *Trees? Grass? Voods... Vhat happened last night?*

Blayze stirred, slowly opening his eyes and smiled up at Medic, "Guten Morgen."

Rein smiled back, "Guten Morgen. Come on... Ve need to move before ze sun comes up. Won't be as hot."

Nodding, Blayze stretches before finally getting to his feet. He gathered his suit, weapons and gas mask then went to wait next to Rein while the others were moving to get ready. Tilting his head, confusion crossed Pyro's face as he looked around at the changed scenery.

"Aw Man... It's still dark." Eugene moaned, trying to bat away Engineer who was waking the young man up. "This Sucks!" He hollered then finally sat up, opening his eyes. "Wait... What? Where the hell did..."

"Ve need to cover as much ground as possible before ze sun rises und starts baking us again." Rein interrupted, knowing Scout would continue on and on if he hadn't of.

"Medic's right..." Dell agreed as he finished gathering his stuff. "We need to get outta here."

Spy joined Rein and Blayze with Dell coming up right behind him. They all turned to look at the youngest in the group, waiting for him with little patience.

Eugene finally dragged up beside them and looked around. "Okay Doc... Which way?" He asked through a yawn.

"Zhis vey..." Rein pointed, showing them which direction.

"You sure about that? I mean... Everything looks different." Scout mentioned, looking around.

"Ja... I am sure."

The five men started on their way, hoping to find some sort of civilization and soon.


	4. Chapter 4

"Are we there yet?"

"NO!" The other four men yelled in unison.

"I svear if you say zat vun more time." Rein threatened with a growled tone.

"Geez Doc, I can't help it... I'm bored as hell." Eugene stated as he was hopping from one foot to the other.

"Ya know... Maybe we should find something to eat... Seen plenty of wildlife in these woods... Shouldn't be too hard. How about it Scout? Wanna gather the firewood?" Dell suggested as he started putting his stuff down on the ground.

"Hell Yeah! Food sounds great!" Eugene agreed excitedly before running off.

Spy, who had been quiet since last night looked over at Blayze and jerked his head, getting a nod in response.

Blayze put down most of his gear, keeping his ax on him as he started following Spy into the woods that surrounded them.

Rein and Dell set about clearing an area to set up a fire and was almost done when they heard a shrill scream. Both men's heads popped up, looking into the woods and seconds later saw a terrified looking Scout as he came flying past, hollering, "GO! GO! GO! RUN!"

Before either of the men could much less blink, a loud noise emitted from where Eugene had just came running from and saw a huge, monstrous creature with several legs and what looked like two arms in front come barreling out at top speed. Their eyes widened as they quickly jumped out of the way in just the nick of time.

"That things bigger than... than Sniper's camper..." Dell pointed out only moments before another loud noise came from behind the creature. "What the Hell?"

The huge tank like vehicle came to a stop right in front of them. "Zat zhing is bigger zan ze robot machines' transport." Rein said, brushing himself off as he stood up.

It did not take long for Blayze and Spy to rejoin the group once they had heard the commotion. "Where is Eugene?" Spy asked, looking around for his son.

"He ran that-a-way, bein' chased by... a bug?" Dell inquired, looking at Rein.

Rein nodded before speaking his confirmation, "Zat is vhat it looked like."

Spy looked at the two men in confusion, wondering why his son would be scared of a bug.

"I'm back... Whoa! What a Rush!" he hollered, slightly out of breath. "Did you see the size of that thing? Holy Shit! It was Huge!"

"Ja... Ve did... Vhere did it go?"

"It finally stopped a little ways back there." Eugene answered, throwing a thumb over his shoulder to indicate where the creature had stopped. "It's eating grass now... Don't know why it's messin' with that when it's big enough to eat the damn trees."

Blayze was ignoring the conversation at hand as he walked over to the tank, knocking on what appeared to be the door. "Hello? Anyone in there?" he asked, then stepped back as he heard movement inside, tilting his head when he heard someone knock back from inside the vehicle. He stepped back up to the door and knocked again.

"May want to stand back a bit!" Came a muffled voice from inside right before a hissing sound was heard as the door started to open.

All eyes turned towards the vehicle, drawing them curiously closer to where Blayze was standing.

A man walked out onto the lowered ramp. He was a tall, husky man with short, black hair, blue eyes and sharp, black fingernails. His olive drab jumpsuit and combat boots hid most of his body. "Unarmed, unarmored in the wilderness... Are you guys lost?" he asked, looking at the group in disbelief.

"Vell... Ja... In a vey... Vhere are ve?" Rein asked in return.

"Where are you? Welcome to the Changing Lands of earth..." The man greeted with a raised eyebrow. "How far from your community did you travel?"

"Community?" Dell asked, looking at the others. "We come from... Well I guess around New Mexico... We were kinda in the middle of a war... Well a Capture the Point type anyway. Then boom... We're here..." he explained.

"Ohh... Well you're a long way from home. This is Virginia and you're about as vulnerable as you'll ever be standing right here, right now... I can't stress that enough." The man told them adding emphasis on **Right here, right now**.

"Vhy is zat?"

"Well... I can go into the fact that you know... Magic zone... Lot's of energy being slung around... Supernatural predators... Things from the rifts, but normally I can just point out the fact that there's Fluffy... You've met Fluffy... You don't want to meet Fluffy again. You may want to get in the tank." He pointed out with a bit of nonchalance, waving them towards the entry way.

"Fluffy?" Rein asked, confused.

"The overgrown cockroach that I chased right through here." He reminded them matter-of-factly.

The five men looked off where 'Fluffy' was last seen barreling through, contemplating what they should do.

Rein looked over at his group, distrusting the man before him. He was not getting a good feeling about this man for some reason. "Okay... Vell..." he started but was quickly interrupted by Eugene.

"That sounds like a great idea! Come on, let's go!" he agreed energetically before beating the others inside.

The others looked at each other then finally started filing inside the large tank, Rein and Spy keeping a close eye on the man before them.

"Vhat is zhis zhing?" Medic asked, looking around.

"Oh this? It's my own creation, it's the Dune King." he explained, shrugging his shoulders. "Large transport vehicle." He added when he saw their expressions.

"Interesting..." Rein commented, looking around the vastness of the 'Dune King' and clearing his throat as he looked at his teammates, still not feeling at all comfortable. "So, you say vere on earth..."

"Yep"

"So... You mean we weren't abducted by the little green men?" Scout asked, his voice showing his hyperness to the newcomer.

"Well... It's possible, actually... You could have been and just dumped here." Came the man's answer. There was a long pause where everyone was looking at each other before he asked, "You're talking about aliens, right?"

"Well... Yeah..." Eugene answered back.

"Yep..." He nodded, looking around at the disbelieving looks before he spoke up once again, "What? They're all over the place."

"Really?" Eugene asked, a nervousness being heard in his voice.

"Yep." The man nodded, shrugging his shoulders once again. "Surprised you haven't met any yet."

"Actually you're the first person we've met." Eugene told him simply.

"Okay..." He responded in disbelief.

"You can pretty much say ve just got here yesterday." Rein said before being slightly insulted by the man's next comment.

"And been dropped on your heads."

"Nein.."

"No? DeeBees are everywhere... Everywhere..."

"DeeBees?" The doctor asked in confusion.

"Dimensional Beings... Uhhh... People who wound up here." He explained further, looking into their still confused faces.

"But we wound up here..." Engineer pointed out.

"Well than it's possible you're a DeeBee then. Welcome to the club."

Medic looked over at the rest of the group, cocking his eyebrow. "Dimensional beings... Aliens... Next he'll be telling us there is a Santa Claus..."

"Well yeah, Nick... Nice guy... Know him well... You should met him sometime." The man said happily, smiling at the others.

Rein quickly turned his head back around to the man, his confusion growing stronger. "Vhat?"

"Yeah... Like I said, you should met him..."

"Next you'll be telling me ze Easter Bunny is real too!"

"Well... Never met him but I have a friend who's trying to hunt him down..."

Rein shook his head, trying to make sense of what he was hearing. "Aliens, Santa Claus, Easter Bunny... Mein Gott... Zhis man is a total lunatic."

"No, those are up north... We call them werewolves... Really, are you not acquainted with anything from this world." He said, throwing up his hands.

"Werewolves?" Eugene asked, getting nervous all over again before turning to look at Rein. "Isn't that what Demo was turning into that one time? Ya know... The thing that scared the shit outta me..." he squeaked out.

"Ja... Zat is vat he vas... But ve fixed zat..." Medic told him, making sure to use a voice that would calm the younger man down. "He von't turn into zat beast ever again..."

"Oh, so you do know something... Copious amounts of silver? Burned to death? Buried up to his neck in dirt?" The man asked, now interested in the conversation.

"VHAT? NEIN! Ve didn't kill him!" Rein screamed out, horrified that the stranger would ask such things or even insinuate that they would do that to their teammate. "I cured him... Easy as zat."

Dell looked over at Rein with a lifted eyebrow. "Easy?" he asked before adding, "Took you nearly a month to find that dang cure... We were sweatin' bullets by the time it was over."

"Vell... Vhat can I say... It took a little time to figure it out, zat's all." Rein shrugged.

"Cured a curse? I'm no wizard but purging a curse out of someone is a little more difficult than it sounds." The man said, disbelieving what he was hearing. "Hundreds have tried and failed."

"I did not fail... I'm a medic... It's mein job to cure mein teammates, no matter vhat." Rein said defensively, crossing his arms in front of his chest.

"Wizards?" Blayze asked, head perking up. "So, Merasmus is here?"

"I don't know, never met the guy." He told him, watching the fire starter's head fall back down.

Rein looked over at Blayze then back at the man before them before describing Merasmus, "Vell he has scraggly clothes, looks kind of veird, has a skull on top of his head, does a lot of magic, has a book wiv a bomb in ze middle of it."

"Okay... All of that but the book sounds pretty typical of wizards."

"Ze Bombinomicon..." Rein said, as if the man should know exactly what he was talking about before he finished, sounding a little more happy than he probably should have. "It's actually a pretty good book..."

"Never heard of it... Heard of the Necronomicon but that's probably a whole other different story."

"Probably..." Rein agreed, a little disappointed. "The Bombinomicon has a lot of different, veird stuff... Spells zat give us big heads, little heads... Makes us dance in unison, lined up in rows..."

"Magic..."

"Yeah... Magic..."

"Well... can't really let you guys run around with no armor and no weapons that will really help you..."

"Speaking of ze veapons..." Rein started, interested in an answer, "Vhy von't some of zem vork?"

"I don't know... I don't know what's broken to make them not work..."

"My Medigun is not broken... It looks fine... It's..."

"Medigun?" The man asked, now seeming interested in the conversation again.

"Ja..." Rein replied, pausing for a moment, contemplating before finally taking off his medigun and handing it over to the stranger.

"How does this even work? How is it supposed to work?" He corrected himself.

"You switch it on, pull ze lever back and it heals ze teammates." Rein explained, showing him the pieces he was describing while doing so.

"Okay... That's how it's worked but how does it work?" he asked, wanting more in-site.

Medic starts explaining the mechanical basics of how the medigun works to the stranger, hoping to find out how to fix it.

"Alright... Well there's your problem right there... You said it gives a positive charge by tossing protons at your targets, right?"

"Ja..."

"Protons don't really move here... Electrons do."

"But vouldn't zat electrocute people?" Rein asked, a little worried that he won't be able to fix his gun to work like it should.

"Yes, actually."

"I don't vant to electrocute zem, I vant to heal zem."

"Well... You're going to induce the positive charge by pumping out protons before right?"

"Ja."

"Now you have to work with electrons, right?... They send out a negative charge... Try modifying it to suck up electrons, that way you'll cause a positive charge."

"Zat vould be doable..." Rein said more so to himself then turned to Dell, "Right?"

"I can work with that." Dell replied, nodding to the doctor.

"Now, ze same vould go vith his ozzer contraptions."

"Probably."

"His Sentry guns, dispensers, teleporters..."

"Teleporters?"

"Ja... He builds ze vun zhen he builds ze ozzer vereever he needs to zhen ve just stand on zem and... teleport... " Rein explained, shrugging like it was no big deal.

"If it works on the same principle just electricity being on a different polarity then... yeah... All you'd have to do is switch it around and find a new power source."

"Vere vould we find zhis power source?"

"Depends... How much power do they need?"

Engineer goes into the long explanations of his machines, getting more excited the more he talks about them.

"Gotcha! Nuclear Reactors!"

"Wouldn't that make them blow up?" Engineer asked worriedly.

"All depends on whether or not you take care of them."

Rein looked over at Engineer, giving sound advice, "Ve very careful vith zhose..."

"Yeah... Gotcha Doc..." Dell nodded, completely agreeing with his teammate.

"I've got like one or two in the back of the truck but other than that, you'll probably have to salvage them... Power armors, robots... Whatever you can, among other things, batteries should work... A little bit of acid, an electrical charge and you should be good."

"So you say zat ze vest of our veapons are useless... guns... flamethrower... an ax."

"They would be good if you were just dealing with just people... Not everything in here is exactly what it seems to be... Magic around here does weird crap to things... Like for example, a bear spends too much time in a magic zone and what happens? When it comes out it's bigger, uglier, and really nasty... Bullets bounce off him... And they just chew through everything... Tanks, armor... Depends on how tough the armor and all is. Old models, might as well forget it."

"Zat is kinda disturbing..." Rein stated, his eyes wide.

"If you think that's disturbing, you should see what Fluffy does. He can take out entire towns."

"A bug?" The doctor asks, confused again.

"Yes! A fury beetle. They are named for what they do."

"Vell, he did seem furious when he came zrough here..." he shrugged, taking in all the new information which causes him to twitch a little.

"Yeah, well, I ran it over a couple of times..."

"Okay... und you didn't squish it?"

"This thing only weighs four thousand tons."

"Zat vould normally squish a bug, even vun of zat size..."

"Well his hide is about as tough as diamond. Just for regular comparison."

"Let me guess, zhis bug is from ze magic land..."

"Actually... It's from a different dimension but that's close enough."

"Interesting..." Medic said softly,

"And the best part... That's someone's pet... I've been trying to catch it for about... Well, since Texas."

"Texas? Well heck, I'm from Texas?" Engineer piped up happily.

"Yeah well... Probably from an entirely different place..."

"Ever been around Bee Cave?"

"Bee Cave... Bee Cave... What part of Texas is that? Northern, Western, Eastern, Southern?"

"Northern..."

"Nope... I can say I've never been **anywhere** around Bee Cave cause well... I know people there are very... uhh... hostile towards anyone who isn't human."

"Vould zat be ze Robots?"

"Nope... Even though they sometimes use robots... Robots, Robot Power Armor... Stuff like that but mostly just humans, oh and dogs." the man explained.

"Dogs?"

"Yes... They're about as tall as you and me... Speak english..."

Rein tilted his head, much like Blayze normally does. "Zey speak?"

"Why yes... and I don't mean like..." the man started barking very loudly, causing the men to jump slightly. "If you're ever near them, don't make that joke."

"So, do they fetch?" Spy asked, laughing.

"Depends on if you throw their commanding officer and it won't be the officer they fetch, it would be you."

"Too bad Heavy didn't come vith us."

"Heavy?"

"Ja... Heavy Veapons Guy..."

"Ahh... There was more to your team, wasn't there?"

"Zhere vas... A lot more..." Rein explained then pointed over at Spy, "He's not even part of our team. He's from ze ozzer side... We have a Spy on our team as vell but he didn't come vith us... Ze vuns zat are missing are Heavy, Demoman, Sniper und Soldier."

"Okay... Names being self explanatory... Guessing Sniper is your long range specialist. Demo is Demolitions?"

"Ja."

"What kind of well rounded, specialized team do you have?"

"Vell, ve have Engineer." Rein said, pointing over at Dell.

"Explains the hard hat."

Rein continued, "Zhen Scout." The other man looked over at Eugene, trying to figure out what good use the lanky boy would be. "He runs very fast, especially vhen somezhing big is chasing him." he grinned then proceeded, "Zhere's Spy... Ve have Pyro und zhen zhere's me, Medic... und ze ozzer four zat I named earlier."

"Very specialized." the man said, barely nodding as he looked at the five men.

"Ja... And each team has ze same on both."

"No change up in load outs?"

"Vell we get transported to different places, different maps... Zhere's Teufort, und Dustbowl, zhere's... You've heard of some of zhese haven't you? Around New Mexico..."

"No, the only Dustbowl I know of is the entirety of the midwest."

"Have you ever heard of... Mann Co.?

"Never heard of it..."

"Ve're from BLU team und he's from RED team." Rein pointed over at Spy.

"Oh... I thought you guys were wearing all the same color for no reason... Well that settles that."

"And all ve do is fight each ozzer... Get killed, respawn... get killed again, respawn until ze mission is over or ze time runs out."

"You're definitely not from around here then. This planet... You die and it's pretty permanent unless you have a wizard following you around."

"Vell... Ze only vizard I know is Merasmus... und he can be a pain. He's not always around us zhough... Just on full moons and Halloween."

"Sounds like most wizards."

"So vere vould ve get better veapons?" Rein asked after a long silence.

"Well I have some in the armory in front of the vehicle... You're going to need them so go in there and pick out what you like." The man told them, waving his hand to show them the direction. "You're going to need some armor too so go ahead."

The small group looked around at each other, not sure if either they just misunderstood him or if he was being serious.

"And vat do you vant in exchange?" Rein finally asked.

"Nothing."

Rein laughed before saying, "I've lived long enough to know zat nuzzhing is free."

"If I was a cruel man I would say, I'd trade you for your souls. But no, I don't want anything in return for some weapons that I have just lying around."

"You vouldn't get far vith mein anyvey..." Rein said softly.

"Ahh, already sold it?"

"You could say zat."

"Eh... I know how that goes just remember, there's a limited warranty on that."

"Vell, I guess you can say zat considering ve're far into ze future vight now."

"Eh... only about a couple of hundred years..."

"So... Show us?" Rein said, finally giving in to accept the man's offer.

The five men followed the stranger through the 'Dune King' until they reached the armory door. Rein then asked the question most of them had been wondering.

"So, vat is your name?"

"Caltan... Caltan Zerda. Call me Z or Caltan, whichever is easier for you to pronounce."

"Zerda..."

"Yep... That's my name... Well... Here it is... It's not much but I at least have a little bit of everything in here... It's probably not familiar to you at all... These over here are lasers, a couple of plasma cannons over there... railguns... That one and that one are my design... Not very good for fast firing but they have a hell of a kick."

"Lasers? Vhat year is zhis?" Rein asked.

"Old calendar or new calendar?"

"Vhat is ze difference?"

"Well, the new calendar started after the apocalypse. The old calendar is B.C., A.D."

"Ze Apocalypse?"

"Yeah, the world ended. A looong time ago."

"Okay, so... old calendar..."

"Sometime around 2495 A.D."

"Wow! So we're like... in the Future... Time travel and... wait... We can't do that kind of stuff... Can we?" Scout asked excitedly before growing confused.

"Ve teleport..." Rein pointed out simply.

"Well... yeah..."

"Now... We're not going to talk about time travel... That just hurts my brain... Wizards do it all the time."

While the two men continued talking the others started looking around, quietly discussing the different weapons. Blayze's eye lit up then asked, "Is this... Is this a flamethrower?"

"Ummm... What are you referring to?" Caltan asked, looking over at their pyromaniac.

"This one... Right here..." Pyro pointed out, getting a little excited.

"Guess you can say that..."

Blayze started laughing, clapping his hands happily.

"It shoots out something a little hotter than fire."

"Hotter than fire?"

"Hotter..."

"Like?"

"Surface of the sun."

Blayze's eye became brighter than anyone could ever think possible, picking up the weapon then looking back to Caltan, "Can I try it?"

"Vere in ze middle of ze voods... I don't zink zat vould be a good idea Blayze." Rein pointed out, trying to be the voice of reason.

"Personally, I don't mind... Just take it outside." Caltan told Blayze, motioning for him to go ahead.

"Ve are in ze middle of ze woods..." Medic repeated, making sure to clarify the fact in case Caltan had missed the little memo.

"Yep... It's rained recently," Caltan pointed out, shrugging his shoulders then turned to Blayze. "Watch the fire on it... The heat flash can be a little bit toasty."

"I have a suit!" Pyro informed him happily.

"That won't do you any good. What is it made out of?"

"Asbestos."

"Match Head." Caltan said with a nod, snapping his fingers to indicate how fast Blayze would go up. "The black one is proof against heat." He continued, pointing out the suit.

"Cool!" Blayze replied, grabbing the black suit and the new flamethrower and running off.

Rein sighed heavily, shaking his head. "Pyro..."

"Kinda figured... I've met a few pyromaniacs around... They haven't been quite **that** excited about finding one of those."

"Uhhh... Doc... Do you think this is a good idea? I mean... You know how he gets when there's a lot of fire and you know the whole Pyroland thing that he does..." Eugene points worriedly, his voice almost failing him at the end.

Caltan looked at the younger man in confusion before Rein started trying to explain.

"Pyroland... It's a place in his mind that's real... fluffy. It has balloonicorns and lollichops... Trees made out of lollipops."

"Interesting... Well... I'm sure they make medicines for that."

"Vhile ze rest of us sees fire... a whole lot of fire..."

"Well... There may be a medicine for that but I don't know if I would want to give a man that could have a life that happy anything to stop it. Now if you need help finding out what you'd be most comfortable with, just let me know."

"So zhis saw vouldn't be any help at all?" Rein asked, a little disappointed in what he's heard so far about how useless their weapons are.

"Can you saw through titanium with it?"

"Vell... I've never tried but I don't zink so..."

"Then probably not... You'd be at it all day and still get nowhere."

"Hey Doc! Isn't that your healing saw thing?" Eugene asked, pointing at the saw.

"Vell... Ja..."

"Healing saw?" Caltan asked, confused.

"I play it... It heals..."

"Did you equip it with some sort of gizmo like in your pack?

"Nein... It's just a saw..."

"Ohhh.. Okay... So more of wizards did it... Got it."

"I am not a vizard."

"Well there's only a couple of explanations if there's nothing really special about the saw. You play it and healing happens... One is magic... The other is psionics... Probably more likely the first one than the second."

Rein looked at Caltan, unsure about the man's logic before he replied now a little unsure about himself as well. "I... don't... zink so..."

"Well first thing's first..."

Rein interrupted, shrugging his shoulders. "I don't even know if it vorks in zhis vorld anyvay. I haven't tried it."

"There's only one way to find out."

"Scout... Go jump off ze roof." Rein told him with a grin as Eugene looked at him with a horrified expression. "Don't vorry... I vill heal you."

"Umm... No..."

"Vell... If zhis vorks zhen you vill see..." Medic sighed, putting the saw up on his shoulder, tucking it to his left cheek as if it were a violin then started moving his right hand back and forth as if he were playing it as such while humming a song that was now running through his mind.

A healing aura started pulsing around each person inside the vehicle, growing stronger as he continued.

"Ok... Are you trying to do magic?"

"Nein... I vas just zinking about playing ze violin."

"Good News! You're not a wizard!" Caltan told him with enthusiasm in his voice.

"I alveady told you zat I'm not a vizard..."

"Psychic Healing... Does that happen every time you try to play the violin?"

"Zhis is ze only saw I ever tried to use for it..."

"Okay... Just try it without the saw. Act like you're playing your violin without the saw."

"Okay..." Rein replied, still unsure of himself. He laid down his saw then positioned his hands as if they were holding his beloved violin and started moving his fingers and hands. His eyes closed, losing himself to the music within his own mind. Once again the healing aura started pulsing, this time seemingly stronger than the last.

"Well... Guess what..."

"How does zat vork?" Rein asked, curious as he saw the last of the healing auras die down.

"Mind over matter mostly. It varies from psychic to psychic... I know people who bursts into flames, because they're happy."

"Don't tell Blayze that..."

"Kinda figured he was one of them." Caltan said slightly confused.

"Nein, zat happened ven he vas a kid."

"Oh, okay..."

"Place caught on fire because he vas playing vith matches... I saved him."

"That was nice of you."

"Vell..." Rein trailed off, not really considering it an act of heroism.

"At least you got one thing going for ya... You can heal, without that gun of yours."

"It's smaller zan ze gun und I can't uber anyvun."

"Uber?"

"Ja... Ze UberCharge vunce it reaches to full capacity at a hundred percent, I can hit ze svitch vunce more und it makes me und whoever I have ze gun on, indestructible. Not for long vut long enough to do some damage, or save a life."

"That's... pretty incredible... I'd kinda like to see that in action." Caltan told him, his interest peaked.

"Vell if I ever get it fixed zhen... hopefully you can."

"What tools do you need?"

Rein started listing off the tools that he would need to try and fix his medigun.

Caltan nodded as he told him matter-of-factly. "The tools you listed are all fairly common... There's a small machine shop in the back of this thing."

"Really? Machine shop?" Dell asked with widened eyes, his body stance showing his interest.

"Yeah... Back there, I use it to work on vehicles."

"May I?"

"Have at it..." he said, waving him on.

"Yeehaw!" Dell hollered out, running off towards the back of the Dune King.

"Never really saw anyone that excited..."

"Engineer... Vorkshops are his heaven."

"Probably should have warned him about that hover bike I have hanging from the ceiling."

"A hover bike? You have a hover bike? What is a hover bike?" Scout asked excitedly, bouncing in place as he was looking.

"It's like a motorcycle with rockets."

"Awesome! Can I try it?"

"It's not working right now... That's why it's hanging from the ceiling."

"Aw Man!" Eugene said in disappointment then perked up just as quickly as he was crushed. "What if Engie fixes it?"

"Well, if Engie fixes it then I don't see why not... You'll have to have a crash helmet though."

"Eh..." Eugene waves his hand in dismissal.

"It breaks the sound barrier, you'll want a crash helmet."

Spy looked over at Eugene, telling him point blankly, "You **will** be wearing a helmet."

Scout rolled his eyes, sighing heavily then quickly added, "I'm gonna go see if Engie will fix it." He then ran off towards the back of the vehicle.

"You might want to duck near the stairs!" Caltan hollered out right before you heard a loud smack and Eugene screaming, "OW!"

"I should really put a sign up on that."

"Medic!"

"Veally? Veally?"

"Ever feel like you have... Oh what's the word? Trained Dogs... When they have a certain behavior... Have a certain trigger... They react a certain way... Think you've trained them..."

"Anytime zey get a boo boo... Zey holler for me to help zem..." Rein told him before sighing loudly and walking off to help out his Scout.

"So, the man of mystery is left. I know none of this probably suits your fancy..."

"You would be correct. But it is better zan being out zhere... With zat fury beetle out zhere..."

"Eh... There's worse things out there than that. That's just the most immediate worse thing."

"Worse zhings... Excellent..." Spy noted with a lack of enthusiasm.

"So you got thrown in with..."

"Ze enemies... Oui..."

"Very uncomfortable, I bet."

"Well... At first it was pretty tense... zhen... When I informed Eugene zat I was his fazzer..." Spy revealed with a long pause falling between the two men before the man of mystery sighed, looking up at Caltan. "Very long story..."

"I can imagine. Seems like the others are busying their hands... What do you do?"

"Well... I'm a Spy..." he said simply.

"Stealing information, relaying data..."

"Backstabbing... I disguise myself as someone else and zat usually gets me zrough."

"Master of Disguise."

"You hear zem talk about Heavy?"

"Yeah"

Spy takes out his spy kit and takes out his paper mask of the BLU Heavy Weapons Guy and slips it on, a simple string holding it in place. A puff of smoke appeared before their very eyes and quickly dissipated revealing a large, overweight Russian standing before Caltan. "Vere is Sanvich?!" He hears the large man holler in his Russian accent.

"Master of Disguise doesn't really cut that... That's almost Doppleganger level."

"Run little baby, run! Waaa... Waaa... Baby gonna cry?" Spy continues, mocking Heavy before he started laughing then said as he did a little dance. "I'm fat and I know it!"

Caltan couldn't help but laugh in return then watched as the Heavy reached up to his face then in another puff of smoke, Spy was back looking at him.

"Zat's what I do... I disguise myself as ozzers..."

"Seems like it's a lot of fun when the others aren't paying attention to you."

"Oui! Zhen zhere's ze Bushman... I call him ze Pissman..." Spy tells him as he starts putting the mask of the Sniper on, transforming himself once again.

"The Pissman?" Caltan asked, looking confused.

"Tha's roit, mate... It's a jar of jarate... Or as you can say... My own piss." Spy said using Sniper's Australian voice.

"Carries around jars of his own piss..."

"An' throws 'em at... Well not jus' his enemies but his mates too. It puts out fire."

"You know what's bad? That would almost make sense if it wasn't piss."

"Yeah..." Spy started, taking off the mask then added, "I don't like him very much."

"I can imagine. I wouldn't be too happy if someone slung piss at me... teammate or not."

"Zhen zhere is Demoman." Spy told him, slipping on the mask of the one eyed, black Scottish man. "I make things go Ka-Boom! I have but me one eye... from wrestlin' Nessie... Oh Nessie... I think she stole me scrumpy... I nee me scrumpy..." he said, throwing up his hand as if he were holding a bottle, acting a bit drunk as he spoke.

"Why did he piss off Nessie?"

"Nessie took me eye... an I'm a drunk..."

"How long did you study them to be able to do that?" Caltan asked, intrigued.

Spy took off the mask then answered, "Well... When you have a team zat has ze same type people, almost... zhere are differences between zem but zey sound ze same, voice wise... So, it didn't take as long as you may imagine."

"Same people... Personality... Appearance..."

"Our Medic." Spy puts on the RED's mask then took it off. "Zhere Medic." he puts on the BLU Medic's mask.

"It's a Dead Ringer! Interesting..."

"Ja! Very interesting... Ze Ved Medic is a little bit more... shall ve say... mad… Zhis vun shows possibilities of being zat vey but I have not seen him go as bad as ours. Ours likes to experiment vhile ve are avake... Especially."

"Interesting..."

Spy takes off the mask then looks up at Caltan after putting away his spy kit.

"Two teams, composed of the same load out, pretty much the same people, fighting a war over..."

"Mainly land... RED and BLU are bruzers... Zhen zhere is ze Grey man... When Grey showed up, so did ze robots..."

"Brothers... Sibling rivalry?"

"Oui."

"I wouldn't know much about that... But I understand. So, they're throwing you guys..."

"Oui..."

"Instead of fighting themselves."

"Zhere are very old... an' zey want to find a way to live forever..."

"From the sounds of respawn? They found it."

"Zey don't respawn... One of zem has tubes all around an' in him... So does the ozzer one..."

"Life Support..."

"Oui... Zheir Fazzer died an' zhought it would be a joke to say 'Here! Ya'll can have zhis land!' Zey already hated each ozzer by zhen an' instead of splitting it up equally, he just kinda tossed it to ze dogs... So zey fight... Zey hire us to do everything from pushin' a cart..."

"A cart? They are hiring mercenaries to push a cart..."

"Zat has a bomb on top of it... Ze one team tries to keep ze ozzer team from getting ze bomb to ze check points an' when zey reach ze final check point... Most of ze time... Ze bomb blows up, killing everyone around it."

"Out of curiosity... Didn't they invent airplanes in your world? Then someone could just punt it out the back of the cargo bay door."

"Unfortunately, we don't have use of the airplanes... Soldier! I didn't show you Solly, did I? I always forget about him... He's an imbecile... He can bounce around ze map viz his rocket jumper... zhen Demo has a sticky jumper he can bounce around viz..."

"Huh?" Caltan questioned in curious confusion.

"Puts sticky bombs down, runs towards zem zhen jumps as he blows zem up an' he goes flying up into ze air. Soldier aims his rocket launcher towards ze ground, jumps while he firing it an' he goes up in ze air..."

"That's an insane way to get across... anywhere..." he said, his eyebrow lifted in surprise.

"It works... It actually works... An' when ze Medic has a certain Medigun... Which one is it... Oh yeah... Ze quick-fix... When he has ze quick-fix beam on zem and zey go to jump, he goes right viz zem... up in ze air... Usually he hits ze wall," he chuckles, "Which I find funny. No matter vich team."

"I've heard being shot out of a cannon... I've **been** shot out of a cannon, detonating a bomb at your feet to fly?"

"You know what's very funny? Vhen he has ze beam on zem viz ze quick-fix an' zey go to jump as soon as zey exit a door... and his head hits ze door frame... Zat's funny!" Spy laughs, shaking his head. "I see zat happen all ze time."

Caltan chuckles while replying, "I can imagine... Especially if they're use to going solo."

"Well... If he was solo... He would have been so low, he wouldn't have hit it, now would he have?" Spy laughed at his own lame joke before clearing his throat to continue. "Zhen zhere is my watch..."

"Watch?"

"It's not working right now..."

"Runs off of electricity?"

"Oui."

"Well, I'll tell you the exact same thing I told the Medic... The electricity from your world is the exact opposite polarity of the electricity of this world."

"Ze only problem with zat is... how do I fix it?"

"Switch the polarities around."

Spy looked at him, somewhat confused then did the only thing he could think of to do so. He took off his watch, opened the back and took the battery out then flipped it over, placing it back in the watch and closing it up. He put it back on his wrist and hit the button, turning invisible right before Caltan's eyes.

"Ahh... That's impressive!"

Spy started walking around until he got up behind Caltan then whispered out, "I see you..."

Caltan reached out, tagging Spy in the stomach. "Sneaking up behind someone would work better if they couldn't hear your steps."

"Well... Usually, I'm a little lighter on my feet an' usually we're in sand... desert."

"No, that wouldn't make a whole lot of noise but wouldn't you leave a very obvious trail behind you? They're not that perceptive, are they?"

"Non... Not really."

"So, that doesn't just make you invisible... It throws you out of phase."

Spy uncloaks the watch and continues to explain how it works... "Zhere's a bar on here... When I'm moving around, it will start to drain but if I stand still it will recharge. If I keep moving even after ze bar had disappeared, I start to flicker an' if ze opposite team is paying attention zhen zey will be able to see me... Ze only problem... I can't kill zem when I'm invisible..."

"So my earlier theory is correct... If you were to shoot them it would just pass right through them harmlessly."

"I can't even fire my gun when invisible nor can I stopped the bullets from injuring myself."

"Hmmm..." Caltan contemplated on the thought.

"I have to turn visible in order to kill somebody."

"So, it's just good for sneaking. You can't just go up to somebody, kill them, and continue on... You have to be visible."

"Oui."

"I was about to say... One of my brothers would LOVE to learn how to do that." Caltan pointed out with a smile on his face.

"I would love to be able to kill zem when I am invisible. Would make it a lot easier." Spy sighed, shrugging his shoulders.

"Without knowing why you can't, can't solve the problem. Just like the Doctor's gun... Without knowing what's wrong, can't fix it.."

"Exactly... and as I've stated, I'm not an Engineer... I've never cared much for ze hard hatted laborer."

"Which reminds me... They're back in the workshop, right?"

"Oui..." Spy answered, wondering why Caltan brought up the subject but soon understanding as the other man continued.

"I don't hear any hammering... Don't know if I should be concerned or not..." Caltan looked to the back of the 'Dune King' wondering what the other men were up to.

"They're probably gawking at all your toys..." Spy pointed out, shrugging once again.

"Well, hell, good thing I didn't open up the power armor container."

"What is this Power Armor? Is it... robots?"

"Well if robots were hollow and you can wear them... Then yeah... And, most of them can fly."

Spy lifted an eyebrow, smiling at the idea. "Really? Zat is interesting..."

"Like I said... Have a look around, if you find something in the armor that you like, take it... Now, I will warn you... Some things... will probably hurt more than help you if you don't know how to operate them right. Power armor can fold you in half... Break your neck... That is if you don't know how to work it."

"That does not sound pleasant." Spy said, a painful grimace in his expression.

"It isn't."

"I just zhought of something... Ze only way for Medic to be able to heal me is wiz ze medigun an' wiz me disguised as one of his teammates... I can not heal with the magic mojo thing... Zat is... If he would heal me..."

"I should introduce you to some of my friends..." Caltan said, smiling.

"An' who would zat be?"

"Nanites... They patch you up inside as well as outside... They're very popular with people outside safe communities."

"Interesting... Maybe I would like to be introduced to zhese... What did you call zem again?"

"Nanites."

"Nanites..." Spy repeated with an air of interest. "Sounds like termites."

"Sorta what they look like if you put them under a microscope."

"An' zey actually inject them inside you..."

"By the millions... Yes."

"Does it hurt?"

"Very much... It all varies on how they get them really... Most docs don't even decide to add morphine anymore."

"I'm used to not having morphine." Spy pointed out, seemingly disturbed by the idea but also intrigued.

Caltan turned towards the back of the 'Dune King' and started walking towards the back as he finished his conversation with the Master of Disguise. "I'll see what I can do if you're interested... Look around... I'm going to go see what they're up to."

Spy gave a quick nod then once Caltan was out of sight he started doing what he does best, snooping. He opened one crate, crinkling his nose in disinterest then moving to the next crate and the next until finally he spotted something that caught his attention. He reached down and pulled out a handle with a couple of buttons on the side. He pushed one of the buttons and out popped a blade. Smiling to himself, Spy was almost giddy with excitement on finding such a wonderful weapon then out of curiosity, clicked another button and the blade started to vibrate in his hands. His eyes opened wide then the smile on his face grew as he started imagining all the possibilities and damage he could cause with this small yet useful switchblade. He turned it back off, closed it then tucked it into his jacket pocket before he started plundering through more crates to see what else he could find, putting some of the weapons off to the side, in separate piles, already knowing what types of weapons the other men, even though they were not from his team, would more than likely be interested in.


	5. Chapter 5

As Dell entered the workshop his eyes widened in astonishment. He looked around the vast room and up to the thirty foot high ceiling. "Oh my Gawd..." The words fell from his breath. Once the shock wore off, Dell smiled, a smile literally reaching from ear to ear. "Now this is what I call... I've died and gone ta heaven an' nobody better revive me."

Engie practically ran to the tool boxes, opening each one and with each one his eyebrows knitted in confusion. "What in Sam Hill?" He picked up one of the tools, turning it around and over in his hand, trying to figure out what it was then lifted his head to look around the massive room. "Wonder if he has manuals on how to work these gadgets..." he said to himself before turning to see an excited Scout come running in.

"Engie! Engie!" he hollered, skidding to a stop right in front of the older man. "Can you fix it? Please?!"

"What the heck you talkin' about, boy?" Dell asked, tilting his head to the side.

Eugene looked around until he spotted what seemed to be the object that Caltan had described before pointing up. "That! Can you fix it?"

"Son... Do you see how high that dang thing is? Do you see how short I am? How in Sam Hill do you expect me to get that damn thing down?!" Dell asked, a little irate at the distraction in his new haven.

"Aww... Come on man.."

"No!" Dell said with finality. "Now, help me find some manuals to figure out these dang tools."

Eugene huffed before busying himself with helping Engie. After several minutes of quick searching the young man called out from across the room. "Found Something!"

Dell took a moment to get over there then started going through the manuals. "Nope... Don't need ta fix a car... or a... tank? What is this? Never seen anything like it before..." Dell opened the manual, thumbing through it and pausing on a few of the pages. "Dang... Look at all the doohickeys in this thang." He laid the manual back down and shuffled through several more before finally giving up. "I'll figure 'em out myself, I guess." Dell shrugged as he walked back across the room.

"First thing's first... Gotta get the dispenser workin' again... Eugene, run outside and get my toolbox, please?"

"What? That thing is like 'Oh my God' heavy, man..." Eugene groaned then quickly ran out when Dell cut his eyes over at him. "I'm going... I'm going."

When Scout walked back in his eyes were huge and he was slightly out of breath. "Here ya go, hard hat.. Pyro's doin' a number outside.. There's a huge ass fire and he's no where in sight."

"He's a big boy... He can take care of himself." Dell told him, taking his toolbox. "Thanks."

He opened his toolbox and immediately started putting together his dispenser, remembering what Caltan had said and changing what he needed to. It didn't take him long before it was up and running. "Eureka! It's workin'!"

"Vat is vorking?"

"Oh, hey Doc... Got the dispenser workin'... Now let's look at your medigun."

"Excellent! But first..." Rein turned towards Eugene. "How's your head?"

"It's alright... Just a little bump is all... Want me to go get it?"

"If you do not mind."

Eugene took off again. The workshop was starting to bore him, he needed to get out of there and quick.

"I got a little distracted on ze vay here..."

"Yeah, I can see that happenin'... This thang is full of all kinds of goodies... And the tools? Never seen anything like 'em before... Already figured out a few though." Dell told him proudly.

"I see zat." Rein replied as he skimmed through the toolboxes.

"Here ya go Doc! Still no sign of Pyro."

Rein took his medigun, looking at Scout in confusion. "Blayze is missing?"

"Well... Yeah... I've been out there twice now... Big Fire, No Pyro." Eugene explained, his hands waving through the air.

"Ahh... Vell, if ze fire is still going, he is fine." Rein pointed out before turning around and putting the medigun on one of the work tables. He accepted the screwdriver that the Engineer was offering him then proceeded in opening up the main pack to reverse and revise it's polarity and adding yet another feature he had been contemplating ever since Caltan brought up the subject of electrons.

Dell helped where he could but mainly left the Medic to his own device.

Already bored with the workshop and the two older men, Eugene snuck out, heading back to the armory. "WOW!" he exclaimed actually making Spy jump in surprise. "Sorry... You've been busy." he said, looking around the armory and noticing several different piles. "What's all this?"

"Weapons..." Spy muttered simply, regaining his composure then walking closer to his son.

"I can see that..." Scout huffed, rolling his eyes.

Spy took in a deep breath then waved his hand towards the separated piles. "Each pile is for each person from your team. I've gone through the crates and separated the weapons that suits each of you best."

"Really? Awesome!" Eugene stated happily before asking. "So, which one is mine?"

A genuine smile graced Spy's lips then walked over to one of the piles, stopping as he spoke. "Zhis one... I took to mind which weapons you mainly use an' use well an' found some zat Monsieur Caltan has zat better fits you an' your fighting style."

Eugene listened to Spy, screwing his lips as he started coming to a decision. "Thanks Dad..." he said softly, letting his eyes drop to the ground.

Spy walked up, placing his hand on Eugene's shoulder, waiting for the younger man to look up. "You're welcome, Son."

Eugene wrapped his arms around the older man, hugging him tight which at first startled Spy but within the same second, wrapped his own arms around Scout. They stood there for awhile before Eugene started pulling away, Spy letting him do so.

"Sorry... That probably... That probably seemed... childish..." Eugene said, his face showing his embarrassment.

"Not at all..." Spy told him before throwing a playful punch towards his son. "Want to check out ze weapons?"

"Hell yeah!" Scout exclaimed, almost diving into the pile before him.

Spy chuckled softly as he lowered himself to the floor to explain the weapons he had found and already figured out.


	6. Chapter 6

Caltan entered the workroom, looking around in confusion. "I didn't know I had this much scrap back here."

"Ahh... Zhere you are, Herr Caltan. Ve vere vundering... Vat is zhis zhing?" Rein asked, holding up a tool that was unknown to the two men.

"Oh that? That's a welder..." he replied as he approached the Medic. "Face it that way, flip this, then push that."

Rein followed where Caltan was pointing and saying and soon enough the welder sprang to life, eliciting a smile on Medic's face. "Danke, Herr Caltan."

"You're welcome... You can adjust it here..." he added, pointing out the knob.

Rein tried the knob then turned it off before walking over to the Engineer and explaining it to the other man. Once he handed over the tool to the now extremely excited Dell, he walked back over to Caltan. "Zhere are a lot of tools here zat neizzer of us are familiar viz."

"Well, that's understandable... They are well out of your time." Caltan said with a shrug of his shoulders. "So, I take it things are going slow on the fixing stuff?" he asked, looking around still confused with the abundance of scrap metal.

"Nope... Not at all... I got my dispenser fixed... Sorry about the mess... I'll clean it up." Dell apologized, following Caltan's line of sight.

"No problem... Just trying to figure out where it all came from."

"Oh! That's from my dispenser. See, my dispenser can give out metal, ammo and health. Medic here helped me with that last part to help on the battlefield."

"Wait... What? How?" Caltan asked, now more confused than before.

Dell went on to explain the fine mechanics of one of his most prized inventions. The air that surrounded him bubbling with excitement as he shared his logic and passion for his field to the other man.

Before Dell completed his speech, Caltan was already nodding, following the Engineer in vast description of his complicated machinery. "Interesting." he commented simply, the gears already turning in his head on how to use this new information in some of his own inventions or possibly new inventions. "So, you said it creates and dispenses any ammo design you plug into it... What if you needed a certain type... Say like... Silver? Would it be able to mass produce that as well?"

"Absolutely! If you have any silver bullets on you, I could show you a demonstration. All I would need is one."

To say that Caltan's interest was not overly peaked at this point would be a blatant lie. He reached inside his suit and pulled out a shotgun, much to the surprise of the other two men. He proceeded to open it and took out the bullet, handing it over to Dell.

"I would ask why but for some reason I would either not wanna know or you would say that it's none of my damn business." Dell said as he took the bullet then walked over to the dispenser. He stood to where Caltan could watch what he was doing as he opened a long compartment on the side then placed the bullet inside. He closed the side hatch back, pressed a few buttons then stepped back. "Now usually it won't take as long to get the ammo as it will this time but that's only because it's having to configure and produce a new design." Engie explained and once he was done he walked back up to the machine and took out not one but twelve new silver bullets. He retrieved the original one as well then walked over to Caltan, handing him now thirteen silver bullet, the one original and the twelve new ones.

"Impressive... We should talk later..." Caltan informed him with a smile.

"Sure thing."

"Now Medic... Were you able to get anywhere with your medigun?"

"Ja... I believe it is fixed... I'll jus' need a volunteer to make sure, plus I added somezhing new to it." Rein answered with a devilish smile. "Vhere is Scout?"

Engie chuckled, shaking his head. "You're always pickin' on that poor boy... You should be ashamed."

"Ashamed? Nein... Not viz him." Rein put on his medipack and grabbed a hold of the gun attachment. He looked over at Caltan with a grin before commenting. "Ze boy is annoying... He don't like needles but yet he still hollers for me if he so much as gets a splinter... Children..." He looks over at Dell before asking, "You coming vith?"

"Yep... Let me just shut this thing down." Dell walked back over to the dispenser and shut it off before joining Rein and Caltan already at the door.

The three men walked down the long passage back to the armory where they stopped, looking in surprised but remained very quiet after Medic lifted a finger to his lips.

The two men inside had their backs to the doorway as they continued their present conversation.

"... an' when you were only two, you about gave your muzzer a heart attack. You had climbed to ze very top of ze bookcase an' jumped as soon as we walked into ze den.. Zinking you could fly... I don't zink I had ever moved so fast in my life but somehow, I caught you right before you hit ze floor."

Eugene was laughing, shaking his head. "Guess I've been a troublemaker all my life..."

"Zat or one of your bruzers put you up to it. I zink it was Randy who told you zat everybody could fly... You just needed to practice." Spy told him as he reached over to ruffle Scout's hair.

Eugene lightly slapped his father's hand away, laughing once again. "Yeah... He was always tellin' me to do crazy stuff..."

Medic smiled softly before straightening up and clearing his throat.

The younger man turned around, the smile still apparent on his face before he greeted them. "Hey! Guess what! Dad found some weapons! He put 'em in separate piles for us too..." He pointed over to one pile. "Engie, that one's yours. Medic, there's yours and that one is Pyro's if he shows back up... OH! Did you get it working?" he asked when he noticed that Rein was wearing his pack.

"I zink so... I need to test it first."

Scout's eyes widened, quickly shaking his head. "Uh uh... No way, Doc!"

Spy rolled his eyes before taking out his butterfly knife, quickly flipping it open then cutting Eugene's arm.

"What the... Dad!" Eugene screamed out in disbelief.

"It's not deep, son an' ze Doctor needs to see if he fixed his gun." Spy stood up, walking over to the other three men before leaning over to whisper into Medic's ear. "Zhis better work..." he said, his tone slightly menacing.

Rein nodded his head, switched on his pack then pulled the lever back. The blue aura beam left the gun, seemingly more powerful than normal and slammed into Scout. Within seconds the wound was healed. He put the lever back to the middle, his own eyes wide with surprise. "Vow!"

"Doc... I do believe that you improved it immensely so." Engie breathed out, also surprised with the new power held in Medic's hands.

"Ja... I vunder if ze electric charge vill be zat powerful as vell..."

Scout's eyes bugged out, quickly getting to his feet. "I don't wanna find out!"

"Don't vorry... I vouldn't use zat on you... I'm not zat cruel." Rein informed him, shaking his head.

"Good... Um... Wanna check out the weapons now? Dad found some awesome ones for me." Eugene said with a smile and a sigh of relief.

"Let's get Blayze first." Rein suggested as he turned around now looking straight into Caltan's eyes. "You okay?" he asked, his eyebrows knitting in slight worry.

"Huh? Oh yeah... Fine... Just thinking." Caltan answered with a smile.

"Okay..." Medic looked at the man for a moment longer before walking past him, followed by the others as they walked to the ramp and outside only to stop suddenly as they gazed upon the massive bonfire. "Mein Gott." Rein breathed out softly. He quickly walked down the ramp, looking around before hearing a loud noise off to the side. He looked back at the others who had finally started down the ramp then took off towards the noise.

Caltan contemplated on putting the fire out but decided to follow the others, actually surprised at what they found.

"Blayze! Get down!" Rein hollered.

"Uh uh!" Came the muffled reply.

"Blayze... Now!"

"Uh uh!" Blayze shook his head, refusing to listen. "I 'ave a 'et."

"Nein! Zhis is somevun else's pet... Not yours!"

Blayze lowered his head, petting the fury beetle that he had been riding around on for over an hour now then slid off, landing on his feet.

"Vat vere you zinking?" Rein asked seemingly furious.

Blayze lowered his head once again, shuffling his feet. "'ut ee ice."

Medic sighed, no longer able to be mad then softened his voice when he spoke. "Is good zat it's nice but..." he paused, shaking his head. "Blayze, take off ze mask... You're going to get too hot again."

"No..." he replied, shaking his head from side to side.

"Blayze... Please mein junge... I don't vant you getting sick again."

Blayze reached up, unhooked the mask then pulled it up over his head.

Rein watched, surprised when he saw the frosty billow of smoke barrel out as the gas mask was lifted up.

"But I won't get too hot... It feels good in this suit. It's cold air."

Rein turned to look at Caltan which led the other man to explain the suit in moderate detail, especially about the cooling system that it contained.

"I see..." Rein turned back to Pyro and smiled. "Herr Caltan has alveady said zat ve could use vhat ve need to... Und Spy found some veapons for us all. Ve are waiting on you to go zrough zem viz us."

Blayze nodded as the two men turned and started towards the ramp.

Caltan watched them head up the ramp then turned to Engie. "He can understand him while wearing a mask?"

"Yep... Most of us can... He just has an easier time at it." Dell told him before following the others back inside.

Caltan was the last to enter the armory and what he saw only could remind him of Christmas morning. Happy, smiling faces full of excitement and curiosity as they discovered all their new toys. He couldn't help the smile that graced his own lips as he leaned against the wall, waiting to be bombarded with the many questions he knew were circling through their heads. He only had to wait a few more minutes before Scout started asking his then the others followed not long behind him. Once he was done he was mentally exhausted but before leaving the group he threw out an offer that surprised them all. "You're welcome to stay. Make yourselves at home. Bathrooms are one flight up, behind and past the stairs, barracks are on the fifth floor and the kitchen is out this door and across the hall. Goodnight everyone." He said with a wave and left the men to their newly found toys.

A chorus of Good nights rang through the room, some in foreign tongue as the other man left.

"Vell... Vhat do you zink? Should ve?" Rein asked the rest of the group.

Dell looked around at the others then back at Medic before shrugging his shoulders. "It may be the wiser decision and he does seem to know the area and it's inhabitants better than we do." He pointed out, getting nods from the others.

"Very vell.. You und I have a mess to clean first... Spy..."

"Call me Michael." He corrected, gaining a smile from Eugene.

"Michael... You und Blayze see if you can't find somezhing to eat... Don't be greedy... Eugene..."

"Doc, I'm not runnin' to find any firewood... There's a big enough fire outside already."

Rein shook his head, closing his eyes momentarily. "Nein... Start taking zhis stuff upstairs to ze barracks to get it out of ze vay."

Eugene groaned, weighing out his options then finally nodded. "Sure thing, Doc."

The five men parted to go to their designated areas, cleaning, straightening up and cooking for the sake of the entire group and so Caltan wouldn't regret his offer. After everything was done, they ate and went straight to the barracks, bidding their 'Good night' and falling into a comfortable sleep.


	7. Chapter 7

Morning came, too early for some, as Caltan made his way down to the kitchen where he could hear talking and laughter spring from the normally empty room. He had to admit to himself that a couple of them he wouldn't mind hiring for Research and Development. He was actually impressed with a few of their inventions and would love to get his hands on them for his own use as well as for mass producing them. He knew quite a few others that would benefit from them as well.

"... zhen he pounced, literally pounced on top of it before it could get away." Spy laughed, followed closely by the others as Pyro's face turned a scarlet red.

"Well... I caught it, didn't I?" Blayze asked softly.

"Mein Junge... Ve are not laughing at you... I'm happy you caught it or ve vouldn't be eating right now. It's just funny imagining you pouncing like a Katze." Rein explained, patting his shoulder.

"Yeah man... It's just funny is all." Eugene said with a smile.

Caltan, somewhat confused, stepped inside. The aroma that tickled his nose was also making his mouth water. Looking at the table he then noticed the half eaten wild boar.

"Guten morgen, Herr Caltan. Vould you like some breakfast?" Rein asked as soon as he saw their host enter. "Blayze captured ze beast und Michael killed it."

"Why didn't you just fix something from the kitchen?" Caltan asked accepting the plate from Spy. "Thank you."

"Vell... Viz everyzhing zat you've already done for us... Ve really are not greedy people und after yesterday... Vell ve seem like jus' zat..." Rein told him, ending in a heavy sigh.

"We apologize." Spy added, lowering his head in shame.

"Greedy?" Caltan laughed, "Hell, I know people who would have cleaned that armory out ten fold... Armor, weapons, that's just one person... Between the five of you... You didn't do too much damage. Hell, not that it would have mattered that much anyway. Those are just armors and weapons that I've collected in my travels."

Eugene tilted his head to the side. "You travel?"

"Yeah... All across North America."

"In this thing?"

"Mostly... I used to have another vehicle but it got melted into slag." Caltan told him, grimacing at the memory.

"Slag?" Spy questioned.

"Yeah... Plasma cannon fire. Wrong place, wrong time, dealin' with the wrong people."

"Plasma cannon?" Spy continued questioning.

"Yep."

"Did we end up wiz any of zhese plasma weapons?"

Caltan looked over at Blayze as he answered Spy's last question. "Actually... Yes... A particularly nasty one. Plasma sticks and burns for a long time in that one. You may wanna be a little careful but other than that... Oh, and before you ask, no it's not from the same incident."

"Plasma as in ze flamethrower zat you gave him to play wiz?"

"Well yeah... The fourth state of matter... Agitated anything really that's been ranged to a high enough temperature and energy level will just try to melt through whatever." Caltan explained as clearly as he possibly could to the group. "That just happens to last a lot longer than most plasma weapons do."

"Zat is vhy ze fire he started yesterday is still burning zhis morning?" Rein asked as he grasped just how dangerous of a weapon Blayze now possessed.

"Mostly... If it's not still burning off the plasma, it's just burning the wood."

"Interesting..." Rein simply said, lifting a hand up to rub his chin in thought.

"Which reminds me..." Caltan turned to look at the team's Pyro. "Considering all the fire outside about how much is left in those tanks?"

Blayze looked down at the flamethrower that he was still carrying around, checking the tanks. "I only used half."

"Half?" Caltan asked in disbelief.

With a smile and a simple shrug, Blayze told him point blank. "I know how to start a fire."

Still slightly confused, Caltan shook his head. "Oddly efficient... I wouldn't be able to do the same."

"Well... You got to think... In battle if there's not a dispenser nearby or any ammo then you have to conserve what you've got and do as much damage as you can possibly do." Blayze explained.

"Impressive."

Blayze smiled at the positive words. "Leave it to me." He said with a quiet chuckle.

A long silence started to fill the air before Rein spoke up. "So, how is ze boar?"

"Fire roasted, wild boar... I'll say it's something I haven't had in a while... It's good. Thank you." Caltan nodded his appreciation.

"Nein, zank you..."

"I didn't catch, kill or cook it." He said in slight confusion.

Medic shook his head, "No, no, no, no... For everyzhing else. Ze veapons, ze armor, place to sleep last night."

"Don't worry about that. Any decent person would've."

"Vell..."

"Besides, I was raised in the south. We know somethin' about treating people right." Caltan pointed out with a smile.

"You got that right." Engie agreed, nodding his head. "We know how to treat people, make tea and protect our dang family."

"Exactly."

"Just give me a damn shotgun. I can do all three with the shotgun... Well, maybe not make the tea... I'll leave that to Irene." He said with a chuckle in his voice.

"If you haven't figured it out... Zat is his vife... He has a little girl too." Rein informed Caltan.

"And I sure hope I get ta see 'em again."

"Well... If you try hard enough, you will."

"Try hard enough?"

"Yeah... You can eventually get home if you try hard enough. It may take you a few worlds out of the way but..."

"If we're on a different earth in the 'Oh my Gawd' future..." Engie said, interrupting Caltan.

"Time is actually irrelevant when you're thinking of other dimensions."

"Especially when you get abducted by aliens." Scout blurted out.

"Not that again..." Dell groaned, shaking his head. "Dangit Boy... you and your comic books."

"Funny how accurate the comic books actually were... The End Is Near! Yeah, it is..." Caltan pointed out plainly.

"Well, then he must be well educated... At least on all the crazy stuff."

"If he's read the Dracula comics then he's good."

"Oh no... They scare me. I don't really..." Eugene started whimpering as the memories started invading his mind, his body shaking." Red Medic kinda turned into... D-Dracula... De-Demo was a werewolf... And then... there was zombies... Everywhere! I hate 'em... I hate 'em all."

"Sounds like you want to stay away from the north, south, east, west and center of this country. Oh... Whoa... Wait... This entire planet. Vampires, Zombies and Werewolves are not the worst things out there." Caltan warned the young man.

Dell and Rein started snickering, the others looking at them in confusion before they burst out in unison, "Vampires, Zombies and Werewolves, Oh My!" A few more chuckles were heard at the semi-lame reference causing Eugene to pout.

Spy grinned, elbowing his son's arm. Eugene couldn't help but smile and elbowed Michael back. The two went back and forth a couple more times before Scout burst out in laughter as well.

Caltan shook his head, smiling to himself. "You can tell you've been a team for a long time."

"Vhy vould you say zat?" Rein inquired.

"Well, I've been to a few places where soldiers, mercenaries and quite a few other people... You can tell when a team's been together for a long time." Caltan explained.

"Vell, ze only vun who vasn't on our team vas Spy. But apparently he is now." Rein said looking over at the master of disguise.

Michael gave a single nod to the Medic then looked over at Eugene. "Mon Oui..."

"Well in this world... you have to work together to live."

"Zat is somezhing zat we're pretty good at." Rein said with confidence for at least most of them. He looked over at Spy, still not sure about him or how he will play out with the rest of the team but for Eugene's sake, he was willing to give him a chance. "Vell, some of us anyvay... Some of ze vuns zat didn't end up here are not very good at vorking viz ozzers."

"Well, if everyone present is then it's a good start."

There was a long silence, several nods could be seen agreeing with what Caltan had said. Each member of the small group looking to one another, making an important decision then and there. In this world, there is no BLU team. There is no RED team. There are five men and together, they will survive.

"If zhere vas anyzhing zat ve may have gotten from ze crates or ze armory zat you veren't vanting to part viz... Bitte, let us know..."

"Not at all."

"Are you sure?" Rein asked, still trying to figure out the man before them. How could one man be as generous with his possessions as he was?

"Yeah!"

"Very vell... Ve'll clean up here und... be on our vay..."

"Well... If that's what you're wanting to do but I gotta tell you... The next settlement is a long ways away. If you'd like you can ride along with me. I have to chase Fluffy back to Texas." Caltan offered, actually hoping that they'll take him up on it. He's still needing something from at least two of them.

"I still can't get over ze fact zat zat horribly hideous creature zat you call a 'beetle' is named 'Fluffy'."

"It's an ongoing joke." Caltan grinned.

"It vould have to be..."

"You know how you would call tall people shorty and fat people tiny?"

"Ja."

"Same principle."

"A beetle... A 'mad' beetle..." Rein shook his head. *This other person who owns this thing as a pet must be mad.* he thought to himself.

"It's technically the equivalent to a cockroach."

"Such nasty critters." Rein said in disgust.

"Yes and they're very immune to radiation. Haven't had a chance to nuke it yet to find out but that might be next."

"You vould nuke ze beetle zat is somebody's pet?"

"Depends whether or not he starts eating the tires again."

"Zat vould make me vant to nuke it too." Medic agreed, nodding his head.

"Besides, there are hundreds of them on this planet."

"Zhen how do you know zat zat vun is whoever's pet?"

"Because I've followed it specifically from Texas." Caltan answered, sighing.

"Ahh... Zhis person must be a good friend for you to follow a beetle everyvere." Rein concluded.

"Actually, it's my sister."

"Ahh... You have a sister."

"I have a few actually... And quite a few brothers."

Rein nodded, looking around at Caltan and the rest of the group. "Family is nice."

"Yeah but it can be a bit strained when you find yourselves in particular situations such as you gentlemen have found yourselves in." He pointed out but also knowing from experience.

Rein looked around once again, a chuckle slipping his lips. "Vell... Funny zhing is... Engie, out of all of us is ze only vun who has un actual family back on our earth... I helped Blayze out as a child, sent him to ze states for safety. He lived viz me for several monzs until he healed... Anyway... He's like a son to me. Spy und Scout 'are' fazzer und son... Ve found all zhis out after ve got here... Jus' two days ago... But... All in all, ve are a team... Ve are a family. Zat's how I feel anyvay." he finished with a small shrug of his shoulders.

Blayze smiled, leaning closer to Rein and putting an arm around him, pulling him close to give him a sideways hug which his Medic returned awkwardly and with a smile of his own.

"Yep... One big, happy family... Minus a few people." Dell agreed, nodding and smiling himself.

"Well... Good news is, the ones that were left behind are safe."

"Ja... Zey still have respawn."

"And unless your earth got blown up somehow... They'll be safe long enough for you to get home."

"Blown up? Uhh... Let's not zink about zat..." Rein replied with a grimace. "Vhey vould ve be brought here anyvay?"

"As far as I've been able to figure out, this entire planet, this entire universe actually... You'll wind up on Mars if you're not careful but this entire universe has exploded across thousands of others, possibly more... I can't track points though the multiverse. I can't figure out why but it's connected to millions upon millions of places and times. Hell, they're dinosaurs down in Florida."

"Dinosaurs? Interesting... Very Interesting..." Rein said in surprise and rising interest.

"Yes and most are intelligent and some can do magic."

Medic's posture straightened, his eyes growing wide. "Zat vould be somezhing vorz studying."

Caltan and Rein started discussing different types of dinosaurs and what they can do now or how they act. Rein got especially interested in the velociraptor and their abilities but also concluded in his mind that they were a force of nature not to be reckoned with. He also found out that another one of Caltan's sisters was studying them which also peaked his interest.

"So... you don't mind if ve travel viz you?"

"No! Not at all!" Caltan said happily, "In fact it would be a nice change from the quiet. There's pretty much only two things that you ever hear in this thing... The reactor humming and Core talking to herself."

"Core?" Rein inquired about.

"Huge super computer." No more did the words leave Caltan's mouth, Spy's ears perked up. "High graphic, virtual intelligence, combat and tactics basically. Designed and built to coordinate and control several thousand troops at once."

"Our computers don't do anyzhing like zat." Rein stated, slightly confused.

"A big gap... Yours use electricity... This one uses pulses of light."

"Impressive..."

"I would like to take all the credit for it but I borrowed the design. I improved it but... I still borrowed the design itself."

Rein looked over at Dell then back to Caltan, tilting his head. "Do you do that often?"

"Yes." He answered truthfully. "Sometimes just to annoy the people who do it. Matter-of-fact, who is it, oh yeah, the Coalition States. I do that frequently to annoy them."

Rein chuckles, placing his elbows on the table, lacing his fingers together and placing his chin upon them as he listened to Caltan.

"They put out a suit of armor, I put out a better one. They put out a new gun, I put out a better one... That looks just close enough to irate them."

"Sounds like you're an antagonizer." Rein grinned.

"Yes."

"Zat if funny." Rein chuckled again.

"It is also fun actually. There are a lot of people out there squandering their abilities. The Coalition states will only protect humans, period. Not people, humans."

"Und in a vorld vere zhere is many of ze ozzers... It makes it a little hard."

"Precisely... When you have people who only do things for profit... Corporations who make millions upon millions of weapons to sell... Just to sell."

"That sounds familiar." Dell said with a roll of his eyes.

"Yep... Anywhere you have people you have that problem. Well... That's what I do."

"Yesterday," Rein started, making eye contact with Caltan as he spoke. "Vhen ve showed you vhat our inventions could do... Vere you zinking of 'borrowing' zem?"

"I'd like to say that I can remember every little detail but I don't have photographic memory." Caltan sighed in disappointment. "Honestly, they are amazing machines! Things that I have yet to see. I can grasp the concepts... past that though, it's a little bit complicated to keep memorized."

Medic turned his head to look at the Engineer, who was already looking at him in return. They kept their eyes locked, almost seeming as if they were having a private conversation. They nodded simultaneously, making their secret agreement between them before Rein looked back over at Caltan, who in turn had been watching them closely. "Ve can show you as long as you use zem to help yourself und ze vuns you vant to protect und help. Viz all ze help zat you've given us... Zat's ze least ve can do."

"Alright... So, one thing... You do mean by helping me to help others?"

"Ja."

"Alright! Then yes, I would love to learn!" Caltan practically hollered out in excitement.

Rein nodded, sharing a smile with Dell. "Ve can do zat."

"Well, if you all are riding with me then we have plenty of time." Caltan smiled.

"Zat is true."

"There are quite a few things you two may be interested in learning from me as well."

"Vhat is zat?"

"You're good at building healing machines..."

"Ja."

"I can show you a thing or two that this world has developed... and Engie... There are such neat toys to show you."

"Hell boy... You haven't even seen my sentry gun yet. Of course, I need to do a few modifications but... Maybe addin' those plasma things." Dell told him, smiling.

"You might have a better time with lasers."

"Lasers? Hmmm... That would be doable... But if I were to show you how to make a sentry gun though... How would 'you' help people with those?" Dell asked, hoping to hear the right response.

"I've tried building barrier defenses for years now to help people, to help towns, protect themselves from all those things I told ya'll about earlier..." Caltan explained as Dell nodded in acceptance.

"Now there's somethin' about my sentry guns that nobody's really figured out that I'd like to keep confidential, meaning... If I share it with you then it stays 'with you'."

"Alright." Caltan agreed.

"I've got a way that it doesn't pick up heat signatures like most weapons but can actually only fire on who you program it to fire upon. See, we told you about RED team, BLU team... My sentry gun has been programmed to only fire on the RED team. When we had the Zombie attack... I was able to program it to only fire at the zombies." Dell explained.

Caltan's eyes widened. "That would be a significant improvement over the weapons I've designed. Mine only picks up heat signatures... But it can't tell the difference between say a group of children playing and a pack of wolves."

"I can show you how I did it... I don't mind that one bit... Especially if it's to protect."

"That it would be." Caltan confirmed.

Blayze, who had grown slightly bored with the conversation decided to change the subject. "So... How do you plan on getting Fluffy back down to Texas?"

"Well... I don't have any tranquilizers so I thought about using the crane in the machine shop but it probably wouldn't hold him... or her..."

"I don't think that's going to work very well..."

"It might at least until I get the doors closed."

"Well you said... your sister?"

"Yeah."

"Has him as a pet... I can ride him." Blayze offered trying to keep his excitement of the idea down.

"Would you really want to do that?" Caltan asked in disbelief. "That thing is crazy."

"He likes me." Blayze blurted out quickly.

"Well... It's either that or run it over a few times to get it mad enough to chase me."

Blayze's mouth dropped, horrified. "Don't run over Fluffy... That's just... just mean. He's a good beetle."

"A beetle that destroys cities..."

"Well... Maybe he's just misunderstood."

"I'm not going to condone anything that could get you killed in an instant. You may want to talk it out with your friends." Caltan said, trying to warn and reason with Pyro.

Blayze looked around the room but the set of eyes that made him pause and lower his head belonged to Rein, the only man who had been there when he was a mere child and also for over a year now, been his father figure. "Please?" He pleaded softly, slowly lifting his head to see Rein's expression.

"I can't say zat I like ze idea in ze least..." Rein sighed heavily before finishing his sentence. "but... if you vant to und feel safe enough to do so zhen... Mayve for a little while... Not ze whole vay zhere."

Pyro nodded, quickly agreeing. "And I'll be careful... Promise."

"I'll hold you to zat." Rein told him before turning his attention back to their host. "Ve cleaned up ze vorkroom last night."

"Thank you for that."

"Ve made ze mess..."

"Actually, I've had to clean up after people thousands of times... I'm use to it." Caltan shrugged.

"People have used your vorkshop und not cleaned up after zemselves." Medic questioned.

"Well... Yeah."

"How can people be zat inconsiderate?"

"Most of the people don't consider it to be inconsiderate."

Rein shook his head, sighing heavily.

Now that the conversation had been turned to the workshop, Eugene found his chance to speak up. "Speaking of... How do we get the hover bike down?"

"You lower the crane." Caltan said simply.

"See Engie! You don't have to be tall!" Scout pointed out.

Dell cut his eyes over at Caltan, lifting an eyebrow. "Thanks..."

"Ahh... Well, at least he didn't try the catwalks." Caltan said, understanding the look he was getting from the Texan.

"If it'll shut you up... I 'might' consider it." Engie told Eugene then turned to look at Caltan adding, "That is if it's alright with you."

"I'm fine with it. I just can't figure out what's wrong with the thing. Reactors fine, it has enough coolant. The intake jets seem just fine."

"Well, considering I've never seen a hover bike a day in my life..."

Caltan started explaining to Engie what a hover bike was and how they worked.

"I don't know if I'll be able to fix that thang but I'll try... Just don't try to break it the first time you ride it like Sniper's van."

"That was one time... ONE TIME!" Eugene bellowed and huffed.

"That's cause he wouldn't let you near it again after that. Hell, your license should be revoked... If you even have one."

"You will be wearin' a helmet..." Michael told him point blank.

"Well... I guess I better go to the cockpit and find Fluffy."

"I know where he is." Blayze told him, smiling.

"You've seen him already?"

"Well yeah... We went huntin' this morning... He's not too far from where I left him yesterday."

"Interesting... So, he's finally calmed down."

Blayze smiled. "Yeah, he was eating."

"Eating who?"

"Trees."

"Oh..." Caltan was surprised at the news before continuing with his comment. "That's one of the few things I haven't seen him eat before."

"Maybe he needed the fiber."

"After a half a ton of fiberglass and plastic, I would hope so."

"Plastic wouldn't be good for him... Or Fiberglass..." Blayze told him, scrunching up his nose.

"Vell... Ve vill clean up in here... Did you vant anymore before ve do?" Rein asked, getting to his feet.

"No thank you. I'm good."

"Zhere is enough for later."

As the others started to follow Medic's lead, Scout looked over at Caltan. "I know you told us where the bathrooms and all were last night but... Do you have showers or something or do you stop at a lake or stream periodically to bathe?"

"Oh... Yeah, actually the showers are above the hanger... the catwalk... You know... Umm... Where the bathrooms are, go up the next set of stairs and they are like right there... Before you get to the barracks." Caltan tried to explain, not really having to think about it really before, he just knew.

"So, they're like... fourth floor?"

Caltan started counting the floors aloud before he answered, "Yeah! Fourth!"

"Okay, great! Cause some of us 'really' need one right now." Eugene scrunched his nose, making a show of bad smells.

"So, ven vill ve be heading out?" Rein asked as he came walking out of the kitchen.

"Well... Tell ya what... Five hours?" he answered, unsure if the others needed time for some reason before they headed out.

"Is zhere anyzhing ve need to do before ve leave? Ze reason I ask is because ve took ze veapons up to ze barracks... After hearing you talk about some of zem... are zey going to be safe up zhere? You know... Ze vay zat you crash through trees und run over ozzer people's beetle pets."

"Oh yeah! This thing has a very good shock absorption system. The entire hull is modified... Hitting something with it is like chopping down a tree with an ax... You hit it and very little vibration to the handle.

"Und anozzer zhing... You told us to make ourselves at home... Is zhere any rooms you'd like for us to stay avay from? Zat are off limits?"

"There is one I can think of... Stay out of the reactor room. That's more for the health and safety concerns."

"Ja... I can see zat. Und ze reactor is on?"

"One, two and three."

"Are zey locked?"

"They're pretty hard to get into... So yeah... They're all locked... I just don't want anybody messing with the small star that I have in there." Caltan explained.

"Und ve don't need anybody coming out glowing." Rein added with a cheesy smile.

"Yeah... I don't know if I have anything on here for radiation poisoning..."

"Und I don't know if my medigun vould help zat... It might viz ze vay I have it set up right now."

"So, the modifications worked out?"

"Oh Ja! You said vunce zat you vould like to see ze UberCharge."

"Yeah."

"I can show you ze UberCharge. Ze only zhing is I don't know if it vould vork against ze veapons of zhis earth... Ve vill need to test it."

"We can do that..." Caltan said quietly, feeling very unsure about Rein's decision.

"Und I vould razzer ze veapon be aimed at me zhen ze person I have ze beam on." Rein told him, causing Caltan to become even more uneasy.

"Alright..."

"Jus' try not to do head shots... or chest... zhen zat vould be a little difficult for me to fix."

"I can imagine... Are you sure you want to do this?"

"Ja. Ze Uber only lasts so long but you vill know ven it is done." Medic explained, nodding his head.

"Oh..." Caltan said, really not liking this idea of Medic's in the least but still curious enough to know if it's going to work or not against this world's weapons. He went to gather a few for the test as Medic went upstairs to the barracks to retrieve his medigun with Pyro following close behind him.

When Rein and Blayze reappeared, the elder of the two looked at Caltan. "Shall ve do zhis outside? Zat vay ze veapons von't cause any damage inside.

"Well, if you're wanting to try slugs then it would probably be for the best simply because they will bounce. Lasers, not so much of a threat. Please don't fire any plasma weapons..."

"You vill be ze vun firing zem." Rein notified him plainly.

Caltan was quiet for a moment before he nodded. "Alright... I still think it would be safer to use the lasers instead of..."

"Vhatever veapons zat you choose. Zhere vill be time to try a few. Zat vay I vill know vat I need to fix und 'if' I need to fix somezhing."

"Well... If it works, then good, you'll actually have a really good advantage. If it doesn't, don't worry, I won't shoot you in any vital points. I'm at least a half decent shot than the rest in my family."

"If Sniper vere here zhen I vould trust him to shoot me... 'IF' Sniper vere here but he's not."

Eugene, a little offended at what he had just heard his Medic say, questioned him. "So you're gonna let a complete stranger shoot you instead of one of us? Really Doc? Are you like, insane?"

Rein smiled as he turned to Eugene, letting a slight chuckle escape him. "Scout... Zhere is somezhing zat I have zat he vants... He's not going to kill me."

"Hold on... Let me show you something real quick." Caltan said as he exited the 'Dune King'.

The rest of the team followed until they were standing on the grass below and watched.

Caltan pulled out the same shotgun he had the day before from within his armor and also took out a ball. He threw the ball into the air, swung up the shotgun and fired. The ball exploded as his shot rang true.

"I vould say zat you're a good shot zhere..." Rein told Caltan then turned to Eugene, cocking an eyebrow. "Can you do zat, Scout?"

"Well... Umm... No... Probably not. Not that good anyway..." Eugene admitted with a defeated sigh.

"Shall ve?" Rein inquired towards Caltan.

"Yeah."

Medic and Pyro walked back a decent amount before they stopped. The older man turned on the pack and flipped the switch to start the healing beam aimed at Blayze.

"I'm gonna get these primed first." Caltan told him as he started setting down the chosen weapons.

"Vhile you do zat, I'm going to charge up ze Uber."

"Just let me know when you're ready."

"You vill know... But I vill say somezhing." Rein looked down at his Uber meter, his mouth dropping slightly as his eyes widened. "Mein Gott... Zhis zhing is filling up fast... Hey Engie!" Rein called out, looking up at the group

Dell ran over, looking at the meter. "Well I'll be damned... It's fillin' up about three times faster than normal."

Medic smiled big, nodding. "Zat's Gute!"

"Well, sounds like you either hooked in a much more powerful power source or the difference in weight between the regular protons that you were using and the electrons now are making a big difference." Caltan told him.

"I zink zey're making a bigger difference cause ze power source is ze same."

"Hmm... Interesting... Normally whenever something comes from an alternate set of physics they just stop working all together instead of being fixable and working better than they were." Caltan explained curiously.

"Vell, I did make a few changes und added a few zhings but I can't use it on anyvun here."

"What is it?"

"I jus' told you... I can't use it on anyvun here... Ze best vay to show you vould be... Vell, to show you und I vant it to be a surprise." He smiled widely.

"You could've just said that."

"Vell... Are you veady?" Rein asked before adding, "cause I'm at a hundred percent already."

"Yep." Caltan picked up his first weapon, taking aim with his laser pistol.

Medic threw the Uber switch, both him and Pyro started glowing a bright blue. He stepped out from behind Pyro, putting a safe yet still close enough distance between them. "Fire Avay!" he hollered.

Caltan fired, watching the laser shot literally fly off before he heard, "Next!" "Alright..." he hollered back, grabbing a Coalition pulse laser rifle. He took aim again, watching in astonishment as that also flew off, not even getting close to the Medic. "Next!" he heard again, reaching for the next weapon. This time grabbing a high velocity shot gun called 'Big Boy'. He fired, eyebrow lifting when he heard the other man holler once again, "Is zat all you got?! We have enough for vun more at least!"

"Alright..." Caltan said picking up a Titan Rifle. "This may or may not hurt!" He called out, taking aim. He fired the gun and watched as Rein fell to the ground with a loud thud. The UberCharge dissipated as the beam lost contact with Blayze. The younger man quickly got to Rein as the rest of the team ran to him as well, all showing worried faces.

Caltan stayed where he was, hollering to the fallen man. "Are you alright?!"

"Ja! I am alive!" He answered before sitting up to look himself over.

"Are you bleeding? That's the question!"

"Vhere did you shoot at?"

"Left shoulder!" He answered as confusion started creeping up inside him.

Rein checked his left shoulder before finally looking up to answer the initial question. "No Blood! I'm Gute!" The face before him was unfamiliar yet he knew the eyes that were looking at him, filled with all the worry a son could hold for a father. "Mein Gott... Blayze?" he asked breathless.

Not paying much attention to the others, Caltan aimed at a tree and fired, watching part of the tree explode then went crashing to the ground. "Yeah... full power shots still... That's impressive!" He finally turned his head to look at the rest of the group, seeing the shocked look on Medic's face. Curiosity getting the better of him, he started walking closer to the five men.

"Blayze... No burn scars... at all..." Rein breathed out, lifting a hand to touch Pyro's face.

Caltan's eyes grew wide when he saw what Medic was talking about before he asked, "You've had that beam on him before, right?"

"Ja..." he answered softly, nodding. "Und in Uber..."

"So, not only did you just stop one of the most powerful guns on this planet... You just healed irreparable damage. That is... I would say the most amazing feat of medicine I've seen since I've been on this planet... Are you alright?" He asked Blayze.

"Yeah... Kinda feels weird..." Blayze answered, reaching up to touch his own face. "I feel... no pain... at all... Umm... There's mirrors inside, right?" He asked, shaking a bit. "I didn't really look last night cause I don't look in mirrors very often... at all..."

"Yeah... There's small ones in the bathrooms and a full length one in the showers."

"I'll be... right back..." Blayze told them as he slowly got up from the ground and ran up the ramp, reentering the 'Dune King'.

Medic watched Pyro run off, his mouth still a gap as the shock stood apparent in his expression. His eyes started to get a glassy look as tears started pooling within them. "I vish I had zhis... years ago..." He said softly after a long silence. "I... zhis is ze first time I've seen him completely healed... Looking like he should have... all his life... If it veren't for ze accident..." Rein shook his head, getting it back together before looking at Caltan. "Everyzhing happens for a reason... Zat is somezhing I've alvays believed. Ve are here for a reason. Zhis happens for a reason. If zat didn't happen to him as a child, he vouldn't be ze lovable man he is today..."

"I know that belief actually... I inspire to it as well. Everyone's experiences builds some part of them. I wonder how he's going to take seeing... himself."

"Zat is vhat I'm vundering... I... I'm going to check in on him." Rein told everyone as he went to stand up then walked to and up the ramp, disappearing inside.

"Well... Damn... I suppose I can't call him a crispy critter anymore." Spy said earning himself shocked looks mixed in with a few glares.

"Wow... Ah... I was not expecting either of those end results." Caltan pointed out, still shocked by the outcome.

"Well... I don't think any of us were expecting those results... Not even the Doc." Dell said, the shock finally tapering off of him. "I think Rein looked more shocked than you did actually. The boy that he saved and took care of until he was healed, just finished getting healed... I'd like to know what he changed though... If I can change it in the dispenser and boost out more health than what it does now, that would help out a lot."

"That sort of healing would have a very, very good use on this planet. People get torn in half all the time... If he could just tack back together and heal 'em, they'd be fine."

"Even with the regular medigun, he could slice you open and he'd have the medigun on like low and operate... The only thing is with the UberCharge... Only four outta five would be able to do it."

"Four outta Five... You mean, Spy bein' on the other team can't do it?" Caltan asked, confused yet again.

"Not with this gun, I don't think. See, each of us has an implant right on our heart." Dell explained, placing his hand over his heart. "That's what Ubers... That's what makes us invincible. The gun recognizes the implant and that's what does it. Now the way he fixed it... I wouldn't know but he may be able to do it to even Spy now."

"Implants you say?"

"Yep... Something Medic came up with. Heavy was the first one he tried it on... It worked so we all ended up getting in a line outside his lab. We were like 'Oh Hell Yeah'."

"And he had it in no time." Caltan pointed out, intrigued.

"Well... Funny thing is... that UberCharge... It lasted longer than it normally does... At least twice as long if not more... Actually, I do believe it was longer..."

"So, it only normally lasts a few seconds..."

"Yep... As fast as that gun charged up to a hundred percent, he'd have a second charge in no time flat."

"If I didn't know any better, I would say that they were completely indestructible. That... That alone, even for a few seconds is long enough to turn away some incredible amount of damage." Caltan pointed out, still amazed by Medic's invention.

"And to get done with what you need to get done." Dell added with a nod.

"Precisely... Hell, the last thing I fired at him will rip through most armors."

"Well yeah... I just saw it take down a tree."

"That was nothing... Most armors are stronger than these trees."

"Wow! Weapons have sure changed." Dell said with a whistle.

"Yeah... They've gotten better at blowing through things."

"Well, depending on whose hands those weapons are in can determine whether that's a good thing or not."

"Most are not in good hands around here... Hell, that laser pistol is one that I lifted off a gun slinger."

Dell laughed, shaking his head. "I use to practice that sort of stuff when I was younger."

"Any good at it?" Caltan inquired.

"I'm alright with it... I was able to hit the targets." Dell shrugged nonchalantly.

"Well, that's not a bad start."

There was a slight pause before Dell spoke again, changing the subject. "Well, if we're gonna leave in a few hours, we should get back in there and finish up the kitchen... Anything we need to do out here before we go? Maybe douse the fire?"

"Actually, I've been contemplating that... We don't have enough water in this thing to put it out. We can detonate a few charges around it and blow it out."

"Wouldn't that spread it too?" Dell asked, confused.

"Depending on what type charges you use. High ones would blow it out, low ones would spread it out." Caltan explained.

"Then there's that dang beetle thing. If Pyro's still up for riding it maybe he can get it off in the distance."

"I hope he's alright."

"Yeah... That was a tremendous shock."

"I know those types of shocks and they're not fun... Actually, they can be quite life changing."

"Hopefully this one will be for the better."

"And not for the worst." Caltan added.

"Yeah... That wouldn't be good... But Rein'll take care of him... Oh, by the way, I'm Dell... I know you know us by our professions. That's Eugene... Spy's decided to go by Michael, which is actually his birth given name."

"Dell, Eugene, Michael... A pleasure to meet you." Caltan smiled, addressing them all.

"Ze pleasure is all mine." Michael smiled, giving a small bow to their host.

"Then Medic is Rein and Pyro is Blayze."

"Water and Fire?"

"Different Rein... R-E-I-N."

"Oh so like the things you control horses with, okay."

"Pretty much."

"I just realized, I've never really given you guys a tour... Just told you where to go."

"Eh... We're pretty good at taking verbal directions though." Dell shrugged.

"Well, if you ever decide that you'd like one, just ask." Caltan let them know as the remaining men made their way up into the 'Dune King'. "It's sort of been a while since I've actually spoke with anybody."

"Well, ya know... Actually, I'm pretty glad we met ya." Dell smiled. "And glad ya didn't squish us as well."

Caltan grinned, looking around at the remaining members. "I'm glad I didn't either."

"Guess we better get busy... Plus I wanna check on Rein and Blayze... Make sure they're okay... Ya know?"

"Well, if I know anything about the same kind of shock trauma that Blayze just had... He's gonna want some private time. I would not be surprised if he had sealed the doors to which ever room he ended up in."

"Pyro's always been pretty private... He never ate with us... or showered when anyone was in there... We never saw him without his mask until after we got here... Rein had to convince him to take it off so he could even breath... Tell ya the truth... He hasn't acted like himself or at least the Pyro we all know since the mask was taken off... To me it's a good thing... We can actually hold conversations with him now." Dell explained, giving Caltan an inside look at their favorite fire starter.

"That is good... Hopefully if he does change... It'll be for the better." Caltan sighed then looked over at the stairs. "Well... Better start getting the preparations done... Holler if you need anything." He told them as he started walking off towards the control room.

"Got it, Boss." Dell called out then turned to Michael and Eugene. "Let's do this..."

The other two nodded and the three of them went to the kitchen to finish cleaning it up.


	8. Chapter 8

As soon as Blayze reached the fourth floor of the giant APC, he bolted towards the shower room, threw the door open then slammed it shut, locking it. His breathing came short and fast as he leaned against the door, trying his best to slow his pounding heart. He didn't want to show the others just how scared he was when everything was pointed out about his change. Once he regained control of his own limbs, he slowly pushed away from the door, making his way towards the mirror. "Oh my God..." He breathed out softly. One hand reached for the mirror before he realized it was still gloved. Looking down at his hands he started to slowly pull off the gloves. He turned his hands over a few times, his mouth dropping as he gasped. **No scars... No burns...** He thought in disbelief.

Looking back to the mirror, he raised a shaky hand to his face, feeling the smooth, unblemished skin for the first time since he was a boy. He inhaled sharply as images started rapidly invading his mind, bringing him to his knees. Matches, fire, destruction... A small child in flames, burning, screaming, crying for help. Outside, a man, darkness. The darkness enveloped him until there was nothing

Blayze was now laying on the floor; shaking, whimpering as tears threatened to escape his eyes.

There came a soft knock on the door but no reply would form. Another knock.

"Blayze? Mein Junge... Open ze door... Please?" Rein called out softly, waiting for an answer but getting only silence. "I know it's a shock Mein Sohn... but... Let me help... Please Sohn..." He tried again, his forehead resting against the cool, metal door. He exhaled heavily after standing there for several more minutes before lowering himself to the floor, leaning the side of his head against it. A memory of a small, frightened child flashed in his mind, giving him the answer to his silent question. Not moving his head off the door, he began to sing.

" _Der Mond ist aufgegangen,  
Die goldnen Sternlein prangen  
Am Himmel hell und klar;  
Der Wald steht schwarz und schweiget,  
Und aus den Wiesen steiget  
Der weiße Nebel wunderbar._

 _Wie ist die Welt so stille,  
Und in der Dämmrung Hülle  
So traulich und so hold!  
Als eine stille Kammer,  
Wo ihr des Tages Jammer  
Verschlafen und vergessen sollt_."

The overwhelming darkness... A voice... A song... Another memory... A white room... A soft bed... A smile, a face, warmth, happiness, comfort, safety...

Blayze opened his eyes, his body calming down as the song from so long ago drifted towards him, wrapping him in it's comforting embrace.

" _Seht ihr den Mond dort stehen?  
Er ist nur halb zu sehen,  
Und ist doch rund und schön!  
So sind wohl manche Sachen,  
Die wir getrost belachen,  
Weil unsere Augen sie nicht sehn._

 _Wir stolze Menschenkinder  
Sind eitel arme Sünder  
Und wissen gar nicht viel;  
Wir spinnen Luftgespinste  
Und suchen viele Künste  
Und kommen weiter vun dem Ziel._"

After finishing the song, Rein sat there for only a moment when he heard the click of the lock. He quickly stood up, took the medipack off laying it against the wall before opening the door. "Blayze?" he practically whispered as he entered the room.

Arms quickly enfolded the older man almost causing him to jump in surprise but he suppressed it. Rein turned within the arms, hugging the other man with as much force as he himself was being held. "It's okay mein sohn... It's over... It's all over..." He said softly as the body before him started to shake. Rein tightened his hold with one arm, the other rubbing up and down Pyro's back as the younger man started crying, the tears soaking Rein's shoulder.

Several minutes passed before the tears finally stopped but neither man pulled away from the other. Blayze turned his head, resting it on Rein's shoulder before a soft voice drifted out. "I remember that song... You used to sing it to me when I couldn't handle the burnt me... What I looked like... When I got upset or sad... It calmed me then too, just like now."

Medic nodded his head, still rubbing Pyro's back. "Ja... Und I vould tell you zat you vould be alright... Zat you had a long und exciting life ahead of you und no matter vat obstacles laid ahead of you, you vould come out stronger zhen ever... Vas I right?"

Blayze chuckled then lifted his head to look into Rein's eyes, causing the older man to stop the rubbing. "Yes... You were right... And it's true now too... This is a good thing... I should be happy that I'm finally healed and what makes it better... It was by your hands." He said smiling.

Rein couldn't help but to smile back, giving Blayze one last hug before pulling away. "I only vish I could have done zat years ago."

"Like you always say, Doc... Everything happens for a reason." Blayze told him before lightly play punching the other man's arm.

Laughter escaped Rein's lips before he turned to look at the door. "You vant to get out of here or stay a little longer?"

Blayze looked at the door then back at Rein. "Just a little longer."

Rein nodded, fully understanding the reluctance. Right here, right now, Blayze was safe.

vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv

German to English Translation of the Lullaby:

The moon has risen,  
The tiny golden stars shine  
In the heavens bright and clear;  
The forest stands black and silent,  
And from the meadows arises  
A wondrous white mist.

How the world is still,  
And in twilight's veil,  
As intimate and lovely  
As a quiet chamber,  
Where the misery of the day  
You will sleep away and forget.

Do you see the moon standing over there?  
There is only half of it to see,  
And yet it is round, and fair!  
So it is with several things  
That we mock confidently,  
Because our eyes see them not.

We proud children of men  
Are poor and wretched sinners,  
but know very little ;  
We weave great delusions  
And search for much entertainment  
Ever farther from our goal.


	9. Chapter 9

A few hours later the small group were well on their way south, heading towards Texas. Only time would tell what was in store for the newcomers of this earth.

"You think Blayze is alright out there, ridin' that thang?" Dell asked, looking over at Rein.

"I zink he vill be... Ze suit is air conditioned und ze creature actually does seem to like him."

"Yeah... Don't that beat all!" Dell laughed then shook his head. "Somethin' that hideous an' creepy lookin', actually havin' a good side to it."

"Well maybe zat's why zey get along." Michael pointed out in his normal snobbish way, earning him a death glare from Rein. "What? Look at it zhis way... Blayze is not scared of ze beetle... Creatures can normally sense fear... No fear, no attack."

"Michael has a point, Doc." Dell tried to offer seeing the look Rein had aimed at the other man.

"Ja... If only his first remark actually meant zat..." Rein said as he stood up and walked off, heading in the direction of the workroom.

"What's up with him?" Eugene asked as soon as Rein was gone.

"Don't be stupid... After everything zat's happened... Jus' leave him be." Michael told his son, shaking his head.

Eugene sighed then just as quickly perked up. "Hey! There's a pool table upstairs... Wanna play a few games?"

Dell smiled, nodding his head. "Sure... That sounds like fun. Michael, you joinin' us?"

"Non... I zink I will explore a bit... You two have fun."

Shrugging, Dell and Eugene made their way upstairs as Michael started scoping out the place, floor by floor until he came to one room in particular. Upon walking in his eyes widened in surprise which quickly switched to curiosity. What looked like a mainframe computer system lining both sides of the room and a huge screen covering the far wall. He walked down the walkway leading towards the central computer terminal and stopped before it. "Ahh... Zhis must be 'Core'." He said softly, getting ready to lift his hands up to the keyboard.

"You are correct. I am Core and you sir are not authorized to access me."

Michael jumped back looking at the computer then around the room. "Caltan gave us permission to go anywhere but ze reactor."

"That may be true and I am not saying you can not be in here. I said you are not authorized to access me."

"Ah Merde..." Michael grumbled, knowing he wasn't going to win this fight and turned around, stomping back out of the room.

A few minutes later Michael entered what must have been the cockpit. There was very little standing room so he lowered himself to the floor with his back against the cool metal and his legs stretched out in a downward angle. "Your computer has an attitude." He finally said after getting comfortable.

Caltan grinned already having known that the Spy was in there but not letting on that he did. "She puts up with me... Of course she does."

Michael looked out the glass, seeing Blayze and Fluffy not far ahead. "Is he laying down on zat creature?"

"Yeah... Has been for a while now... If I didn't know any better, I'd say he's asleep."

All of a sudden Michael saw Caltan reach over, slamming his hand down on a button. With no time to react, the massive APC came to a sudden stop, sending Michael down the sloped floor. He tried his hardest to grab a hold of anything before slamming into the cruel, hard metal. "Ah Merde..." he groaned.

Caltan bit down the laugh that was about to spring forth then looked over at Spy. "You okay? Watch out, first step's a doozy."

"What ze hell?" Michael grumbled as he turned to sit up, rubbing his back with one hand and his head with the other.

"Sorry about that." Caltan chuckled, "Fluffy stopped."

"Don't mention it... Now how do I get back up zhere?"

"Good question... I'll let ya know." The other man smiled as he rode the swivel chair back to the top, got up and walked out the door.

A long span of French curses could be heard as Michael tried climbing up the sloped floor with his dress shoes on.

Elsewhere in the 'Dune King', Eugene took his shot before the abrupt stop sent him to the floor. Dell on the other hand was quick enough to grab the table, keeping himself upright.

When Eugene got up off the floor, he looked at the table that was now free of all balls. "Yes!"

"Sorry boy... One, you didn't call the eight ball. Two, you scratched as well... You lose." Dell smiled then turned to put up his pool stick. "Better go find out what happened."

"Yeah... Good idea." Eugene agreed, picking up the stick he had been using, putting it up then ran to catch up with Engie.

All three men ended up at the door on the first level simultaneously then exited once the ramp finished lowering.

"What happened, Boss?" Dell called out as he reached the bottom of the ramp where Caltan was standing.

"Fluffy stopped and with Blayze layin' on top of him, I didn't think running over him would be a good idea." Caltan shrugged, watching said man now approaching them.

Blayze took off his mask, smiling to the other. "Hey... Sorry... My stomach started growling and I started thinking about the leftover boar and Fluffy just kinda stopped... Guess I'll need to start packing a lunch or something when I ride. Hope you're not mad..." He said, looking at Caltan then lowering his head.

Caltan was looking at him with a raised eyebrow then shook his head. "Nah... Not mad. Food actually sounds good right now." He said, putting other thoughts aside.

Blayze smiled then looked around at the others. His smile fell as he looked around once more then asked, "Where's Rein?"

Dell and Eugene shrugged then his eyes focused on Michael's rather large ones. "Mon Dieu... He was in ze workroom."

The four men ran up the ramp and through the APC, swinging open the door.

Caltan followed in his normal walking speed, trying to reach out but started getting a little worried when he couldn't grasp Medic's mind. "Shit."

Upon entering the room, he saw the others picking up pieces of metal, tossing them to the side. Finally making it to the small group, he looked down seeing Rein unconscious. ** _The reason I can't connect_.** he thought to himself. "Does any of you know how to use the medigun?" He asked the others.

"I knew the original design but now that he's modified it... Can't say I do..." Dell answered.

"Damn."

Blayze bent down, sliding his arms under the older man then stood up, lifting Rein up bridal style. "First aid kit... Barracks." He said to anyone who would listen then walked off, taking Rein to said destination and laying him down on one of the many beds.

Caltan came in a few minutes later, carrying a first aid kit and a few towels; some wet, some dry. "Guess I should have warned everyone about sudden stops... Happens a lot..." He said, setting the kit down and handing the towels to Blayze.

"This isn't your fault... It's mine..." Came the low, soft, guilt ridden voice of Pyro as he started wiping the blood from Rein's forehead. He winced when he saw the gash near the older man's temple area. He quickly opened the first aid kit and started pulling out everything he needed to mend their Medic.

Once he cleaned and mended all the cuts he had found, he sat down on the floor next to the bed, his head in his hands.

"Look... Don't beat yourself up about it... He'll be fine. It wasn't your fault, alright?" Caltan said, trying to calm the fire starter in front of him.

"You just don't understand."

"I understand a lot more than you think..." He told the other man before walking out.

Sighing, Blayze picked his head up, looking at the large first aid kit again. He then started plundering through it until he found something of use. Getting up on his knees, he opened the small bottle and moved it back and forth under Rein's nose.

Groaning, Rein came to, scrunching his nose and reaching up to bat the bottle away. "Vat... Vat happened?" He asked softly, his hand moving to touch the gauze covered gash.

Blayze closed up the smelling salts and put them back in the kit before turning his attention back to Medic. "I'm sorry... It's my fault... I got hungry and Fluffy stopped... Apparently Caltan had to slam on the brakes too so he wouldn't run over us... I didn't know he would stop like that... I never meant for you to get hurt... I'm sorry..." He repeated, biting on his lower lip.

Rein turned his head to look at the guilt ridden look on Blayze's face, processing what he had just been told. "Don't apologize, Mein Sohn... You didn't mean for any of zat to happen. Did you tell Fluffy to stop?"

"No... I was just thinking about the leftover boar when my stomach growled... Then boom, he stopped." Blayze explained, waving his hands about.

"Interesting... Und who doctored me up?" He asked, his mind still on his thoughts. ** _Is zhere some sort of connection between him und ze creature?_ **

"I... I did... Caltan brought me everything so I could... By the looks of it, when he stopped the pile of scrap metal came down on top of you. We all unburied you and I picked you up and brought you up here."

"Zat explains ze headache... Vhy didn't you use ze Medigun?"

"I don't know how... And you said you made some modifications so Engie and I were a little leery about trying it."

Rein smiled, reaching out to pat Blayze's hand. "I vill teach you... Zat vey if somezhing ever happens to me zhen you vill know vhat to do... It's in ze vorkroom... If you don't mind..."

Blayze smiled as he quickly got up and headed towards the door but stopped in his tracks when Rein called out to him.

"Mein Sohn... You did a wunderbar job at doctoring me up. Danke."

Blayze smiled bigger at the compliment, nodding his head. "You're Welcome." He responded back then ran out the door and down the stairs to retrieve the medigun.

Rein closed his eyes, trying to push away the throbbing in his head and the pains in the rest of his body when he heard the door open.

"You doin' okay there, Rein?"

"Ja... I vill be okay..."

"Alright... I'll just lea-"

"Nein! Stay. I vill show you how to use ze gun too. Blayze went to grab it."

"Nah... It's alr-"

"Herr Caltan... You vill need to know zhis too... Bitte." Rein interrupted once again.

"Okay..." Caltan agreed, waiting for Blayze to return.

As soon as the fire starter walked in, Rein went to sit up, groaning as he did so. Both men went to help, taking great care not to hurt him further.

"I am not..." Rein growled then sighed heavily. "Nevermind..." he said instead, his voice calmer. He knew that his anger was only a result of the pain that he felt. "Danke..."

Both men stood back and listened to the simple yet detailed instructions on the medigun. When he was done, he gave a painful nod to Blayze.

The younger man flipped on the pack, feeling the humming vibrations before finally pulling the lever. The blue beam emitted from the barrel connecting with it's creator.

Rein closed his eyes as he felt all cuts, bruises and sore spots start to heal. He reached up and pulled the gauze off just in time for the other two men to watch it close to heal over as if it was never there to begin with. "Danke, Blayze... You can shut it off now. I'm gute."

Blayze shut off the beam then turned the pack off before taking it off and laying it beside the bed.

"Not to pry or anything but... Why were you in the workshop?" Caltan asked curiously.

"Vorking on an idea zat I had..." Rein answered as he got out of bed. "Didn't get very far viz it zhough..."

Caltan smiled, nodding his head. "Hope it does when you figure it out... If you need anyth-"

"Danke... I vill let you know." Rein smiled in return. "Now... Leftover boar really sounds gute right now." he added, heading towards the door with Blayze close behind.

Caltan stood there for a moment, shaking his head. ** _That was three, Doc... Three times you seemed to know what I was going to say... And then that with Dell yesterday.. Don't think I didn't notice._ ** He thought before exiting the room.


	10. Chapter 10

Several weeks had passed without anymore sudden accidents occurring.

Blayze continued to ride Fluffy through each state. When he needed to stop he would think about needing to go off to the side a bit before doing so. Caltan appreciated this as he took the cues. He still was trying to figure out how Blayze was doing this but it would leave his mind just as quick.

Michael was trying to perfect his new mask and was getting closer and closer each time.

Eugene was getting his fill from the color television in the rec room.

Dell and Rein worked day after day trying to build, test, fix, rework and finalize new inventions that would help them on this earth. Sometimes solo but most of the time they worked together, each throwing ideas out to the other. Several new sentries were built, each one different than the others. New mediguns and needle guns now filled the work room. Each needle gun made for the different dangers that was described to them that roamed this earth.

The four men inside the massive APC looked up simultaneously even though most were not near each other, and started heading down to the first level. Once the 'Dune King' came to a full stop, Dell reached up to hit the button to lower the ramp.

"You might want to wait for me on this one guys." Caltan said as he was coming down the stairs.

The guys took a step back waiting for Caltan to lead the way, then following him down the ramp.

Eugene's eyes grew huge in size when he saw a pale skinned female run, open armed towards the Fury Beetle.

"FLUFFY!" She screamed out happily.

He watched in surprise as the creature's arms wrapped around the woman as if it was actually hugging her.

"I missed you so much!" She said, hugging the massive creature then looked up. "Umm... Hello..." She looked back down to the many eyes of the Fury Beetle before saying to it, "You have a friend... Of course... You've been around Caltan too long, haven't you? Now you're picking up strangers from the side of the road."

Blayze slowly dismounted, taking off his mask to get a better look at the girl before him. White pale skin, long black hair, pale green eyes and sharp fangs. She wore black jeans, a green and black poncho and black sandals. "Hi..." He said softly, smiling at the fondness she showed towards Fluffy.

She finally pulled away from Fluffy, turning fully towards the man. "Hi... Umm... Thanks for helping to bring back my baby. Don't know how you did it but thanks."

"You're welcome... He likes me so it was pretty easy." He said, his smile growing bigger before holding out his hand. "Name's Blayze."

She couldn't help but smile back, shaking the hand presented. "Zoe... Zoe Nocturn." For some reason she already liked this newcomer. She turned back to Fluffy, putting on her mad face. "Never, Ever, Ever run away again... That was bad. Bad Fluffy." She scolded him, waving her finger at the creature with her other hand on her hip as if she was getting onto a small child. "Momma was very worried about you."

Fluffy lowered his head, emitting noises that sounded like whimpering then reaching out for her but not touching her.

Zoe sighed heavily, shaking her head. "Aww... I can't stay mad at you... I know... I know you're sorry." She stepped closer once again hugging Fluffy one more time, feeling the arms wrap around her again. "You missed Momma too..." After a few moments she stepped away, smiling towards Blayze then looked over at the ever familiar APC. She saw Caltan standing in front of four more strangers. "Brother!" She hollered then ran to embrace him in a quick hug then stepped back. "Hope he didn't give you too much trouble."

"Trouble? When has he not been trouble?"

She moved her hand as if waving off the question. "Well... He's a growing boy and loves to play but anyway... Thank you... Look like you're doin' your usual... New faces... Pick 'em up on the side of the road?"

"Actually, almost ran over them in the Changing Lands... What the hell have you been doing?" He asked, looking around the town.

She laughed as she looked around. "Black paint... The base is green." pointing it out to him.

"Ahh... Still having a pissing contest with them? What are you gonna do now? Have a paintball war?"

Her eyes grew wide, shining as the light bulb went on in her head. "Ohh! Great idea! The kids could use sling shots!" She cried out happily. "Be right back!" She ran over, standing not even a foot away from the border of the base and hollered out, "General Winters!"

A man started walking through the base adorned in the familiar black armor of the General, stopping on his side of the border. "What do you want Nocturn?" he asked, his expression showing he was not amused of her calling him out.

"I have a great idea!" She exclaimed happily. "A paintball battle! The kids can use sling shots... I'd prefer them not handling guns anytime soon... or ever if I could help it."

"So... Wait... You're wanting us to engage in a non lethal battle against you and your town?" The General asked, confusion riddled his features.

"Well... Yeah..." She answered back with a shrug of her shoulders.

General Winters thought about the idea for a moment then threw his own shoulders into a similar shrug. "Well, it would give my guys some target practice... What the hell... Sure, why not..."

Zoe hopped up and down, squealing with delight. She was about to run off before a thought popped into her head. "Oh! What time? When?"

Thinking about it for a moment the General answered. "Tomorrow at noon."

Scrunching her nose, she then sighed, "You would have to pick the hottest time of the day... When the sun is it's highest, huh?"

"Would you rather we wait till dark?" He asked sarcastically.

She laughed aloud. "There would be more targets for the both of us."

"And more dangerous..."

"Yeah... True... Oh what colors are we using?"

The General shook his head at her hyperness, never growing use to how she could always be so pleasant towards him when he knew for a fact that she hated the Coalition then looked around. "We'll use green..."

"Okay! We can use... umm... I would say red but we don't have any... Not enough anyway... Can't use black because of your armor... So... White... White will work!"

"Okay... Tomorrow at noon. White and green." He listed back, still shaking his head in wonder.

"It's a date!" Zoe exclaimed excitedly before turning to run back.

"Zoe!" The General hollered out, getting her attention quickly.

She ran back, still smiling. "Yeah?"

"What's going on over there?" He asked, his curiosity getting the better of him.

She turned around to where the man was looking then turned back. "Oh! My brother just showed up!"

"Which one?" He asked, his voice taking on a serious, gravely tone. "It's not the older one, is it?"

"Oh no... My youngest brother. He brought back Fluffy for me." She told him cheerfully.

About that time, they heard an explosion within town. A yellow plume cloud rising into the air.

"What the hell?"

"Umm... I'll see you tomorrow!" She called out as she ran towards the center of Crusado Haven. She stopped right in front of Caltan, looking around. Everything was covered in yellow. "Yellow?" She asked, her nose twitching. "What the hell, Calt-" She looked up, seeing his eyes then groaned. "Cal... What did you do?"

"It's paint! And mustard and -"

"No! No Cal! My town, remember?"

"But..."

"NO!"

"Ahh Merde!"

Zoe quickly turned around seeing the five newcomers also covered in yellow.

"You might want to move." She heard Cal say and quickly listened, planting herself in front of the mercenaries. A wet sound hitting the ground where she had just moved from. "Who said that?" She asked the men, her hands on her hips.

Four out of the five turned to look at Michael, his eyebrow raised in slight confusion.

"Do you see these kids around here?"

He looked around, smirking. "Oui... I see all ze yellow brats."

Zoe's pale eyes narrowed dangerously, her lips pulling back to expose her fangs. "Don't ever say that again around these kids." She practically growled.

Eugene quickly moved to hide behind the other three men, shaking like a leaf.

"What? You can understand me?" Michael asked, mouth slightly hanging open in surprise.

"The F-word in any language is bad... Don't let me hear it again... Got it? You can zut alors or Mon Dieu all you want... And I better not ever hear you call me or anyone else around here a chienne or a chatte."

Michael nodded quickly, his eyes huge. "My apologies, Madame." He offered with a bow once he got his bearings back.

"Merci Monsieur... Vous êtes pardonné." She responded, granting him with a slight bow of her head.

Spy couldn't help but smile. "Merci beaucoup."

Rein chuckled softly, shaking his head at Michael. "Schweinehund."

Zoe's head turned towards Medic, causing the man to tense up slightly when he saw the grin form on her lips. She moved away from Spy towards Medic until she was standing before him. "Er sieht nicht aus wie ein Schweinehund, Dummkopf."

Rein's mouth fell open then quickly closed it back. "Tut mir Leid." He said softly, lowering his head.

Zoe smiled, placing a sharp nail under his chin to lift it back up. "It's alright... Now... Who's gonna give the introductions?" She asked as she lowered her hand, looking around at everyone. "How about... You..." She said, pointing at Eugene. "Come here young man."

"Uh uh... You're gonna bite me!"

"What? Why would I want to bite you?" She asked, scrunching up her nose in disgust. "You most likely taste awful."

"Cause... You're a va-vampire..."

Zoe laughed, shaking her head. "Oh no, no, no... I'm no vampire... I kill them, yes but I'm not one myself... I only look like one... Now, come out from behind your friends and please introduce yourself and them."

Eugene suddenly felt calm and collected, an almost warm fuzziness inside. He stepped around the other men to come stand beside her. "My name is Eugene... My Dad, Michael and then there's Dell, Rein and Blayze." He said, pointing to each member of the team.

"Very nice to meet you all. My name is Zoe Nocturn and I'd like to welcome you to Crusado Haven."

"Haven? Is zhis a protected town?" Rein asked curiously.

"Actually, yes. I protect this town from vampire attacks and the Coalition when they start acting up but it's become more of a game with them." She shrugged then smiled. "Speaking of..." She turned around to stand up on a platform. "Attention Everyone!"

All heads turned her way, some of the townspeople moving in closer.

"Tomorrow at noon we are to battle the Coalition!" She happily announced.

Cheers rang through the small town, men raising their guns in the air as the newcomers looked at each other in confusion. Cal himself was cheering with them.

Zoe looked at the guns as different emotions came barreling at her. Her eyes widened. "No, no, no... Not that kind of battle. We will be having a paintball battle. Kids, you can use your slingshots, men and ladies, paint ball guns, slingshots or catapults... We need all the white paint you can find!"

Disappointed groans from the men were heard as relief poured off the others. Zoe smiled as she then turned back to Cal and the newcomers. "Will you help us?"

Eugene and Blayze were quick to agree and Cal nodded once then ran into the APC. She stepped down from the platform and made her way to the other men. "How about you three?"

Dell smiled, tipping his hard hat. "Sure thing, Ma'am."

Rein looked at Blayze, who seemed overly excited, then turned back towards her. "You can count on me."

"Excellent!" She cheered then asked Michael, "Voulez-vous aider?"

Smiling, he nodded. "But of course... You can count on my assistance as well."


	11. Chapter 11

The evening sky came upon the small town, too soon for some, sending all inhabitants inside to safety. Shutters closed, doors locked and a handful of brave townsfolk took perch in their lookouts.

Zoe paced through town, keeping a sharp watch for anything out of place while still gathering supplies for the next day's battle against the neighboring Coalition base.

Inside the 'Dune King', the mercs had just finished preparing dinner. Michael went to find the other man to inform him of such.

Entering the workshop, Michael walked slowly, watching the manic driven man closely. "You told us your name was Caltan... Your sister called you Cal an' you're acting... differently... Why?" he asked suspiciously.

"Umm... Because..." Came a voice that was unfamiliar to Spy's ears.

"Because, why?"

"Why what?"

Michael nearly growled as he started growing frustrated. "Why does she call you Cal? An' why are you actin' differently?"

"Oh... Why didn't you ask that in the first place?" Came the annoying voice.

"I Did!"

"Oh, well then Hi, my name is Cal, the other one who inhabits this body... You probably met the other guy. Spend a little too much time out in the wilderness, you become... umm.. umm... unstable, that's the word."

Michael lifted an eyebrow, shaking his head. "Merde..."

"Oooo... Better not let Zoe hear that."

Michael cut his eyes to Cal. "You zink Caltan can come back out?"

"Yeah, sure... I don't know why he- Oh wait! My injection... I forgot. I'll be back!" Cal took off out of the room, leaving an even more confused Spy standing there.

"Injection?"

Michael waited for several minutes before remembering, there was food waiting. He made his way to the dining room and sat down. "Gentlemen... Our host is a man of two minds..."

"You are jus' figuring zat out? Vhere have you been?" Rein asked before taking a bite of his food. "Vell, vhere is he?"

"He said somezhing about an injection..." Michael trailed off as he started going into deep thought once again.

"Eat Herr Michael... I vill be back..." Rein waited until the other man absently started taking bites of his food then walked out. He headed to where Caltan always seemed to hide out at and knocked on the door.

"Hold on!" Came the pain filled shout from the other side of the door.

Rein forced himself not to try and open the door or knock again. "Mein freund... Are you vell?" He asked after several minutes of silence.

The door opened, causing Rein to take a few steps back. "Sorry to bazzer you."

Caltan smiled at Rein, his head twitching to the side. "Think nothin' of it. Anything wrong?"

"Actually... Vell, dinner is done und ve vere going to vait but..."

"Thanks. Dinner sounds great right about now... I'm starved."

Rein simply nodded his head, trying to push back his worries and his curiosity. He turned on his heels and headed for the stairs with Caltan following close behind.

Caltan sighed, his head twitching again as he stared at the back of Medic's head, thinking to himself. * _There's nothing you can do to help... Wish you could but-_ * His thoughts were interrupted as Rein spun to face him causing him to stop abruptly.

"I don't know what's wrong but if zhere is anyzhing I can do to help... You vould tell me... Ja? Or at least tell me vhat it is so I can find a vey to help..."

"Umm... I appreciate it, Doc but... It's complicated."

"You saw me heal Blayze... I could try-"

"It won't work... Just... Let's forget about it, okay? It's not a disease that can be miraculously healed." He practically growled.

Rein took a step back, lowering his eyes. "Sorry..." He said softly before he turned back, making his way to the dining hall, his body now tensed.

Blayze looked up as Rein and Caltan entered, cocking his head to the side. "Everything alright?" He asked when Rein took his seat beside him.

The older man simply nodded his head, not looking at Blayze or anyone else for that matter as he started eating once again.

Blayze looked over at Caltan, gaging the tension in the room between the two men. He sighed heavily, shaking his head then proceeded to finish his dinner. He'll find his answers later on, he hoped.

"Dinner's good guys." Caltan commented, taking another bite.

"Thanks... We may need to get supplies soon though." Dell smiled, expressing his appreciation before informing their host of the soon to be dilemma.

"Welcome and we can do that while we're here."

"Your sister seems... Bubbly..."

Caltan laughed, nodding his head. "Yeah... Even that's an understatement."

Eugene, who had been listening to Dell and Caltan's conversation, piped up. "So... Why does she look like a blood sucking vampire?"

Looking over at Eugene, Caltan contemplated on his answer before finally saying, "That's her story to tell."

"But-"

"Her story... If you want to know bad enough, ask her. She won't bite... hard." He grinned.

Eugene's eyes grew wide then quickly decided he was done eating. He got up, put his plate up then took off out of the room.

The others, finishing their meals, got up and dwindled out the room one by one until only three men were left.

Blayze sat there watching Rein move his food around on his plate, not taking any bites but could tell his doctor was deep in thought and still in distress. "Doc..."

Rein jumped, looking over at Blayze. "Ja?"

"You sure you're okay?" Blayze asked worriedly.

"Ja.. Ja... I'm gute..." Rein told him, trying to sound convincing.

Sighing heavily, Blayze shook his head and stood up. After putting his plate up he walked back in, glancing down at Rein whom had went back to playing with his food then left, going upstairs.

Caltan shifted uncomfortably in his chair then looked over at Rein. "Come with me... But this will be for your ears only... Nobody else."

Rein nodded as he got up and followed Caltan out the door and upstairs, going back to the room that held Core.

"God, don't ever let it be said that I'd leave a thinking man in the dark." Caltan breathed out, mainly to himself.

As soon as both men were inside, Caltan closed the door, activating the locking mechanism. Rein then followed Caltan to the center of the room, stopping in front of Core.

"It's not a disease... Like I said earlier. It's a curse." Caltan explained simply. "Core... Fenrir files one through twelve to start off with. Big screen."

Rein watched with amazement as the huge screen on the wall came alive. "Mein Gott..." He said softly.

"Before we start, I should warn you. What you're about to see will not make sense... None what-so-ever... And it will contain content of a very graphic nature. With that out of the way let's start at the beginning." Caltan said, opening the first of many files.

Hours upon hours of information, videos and conversations between the two men left Rein baffled by what he had learned of the other man before him.

"How do you really know zat it's a curse und not jus' a duel mental state?"

"Core, shut off all light except for the front three."

Core did as commanded just as Caltan placed his hand on the reflective surface.

Rein's eyes widened when he saw the growling, chaotic creature with snapping, sharp teeth and glowing red eyes. "Mein Gott." he whispered. He could see the heat rising off the black fur of the horrific hell hound.

Caltan took his hand off the surface, the image dying away slowly. "That is how I know."

Rein took a moment, letting his heart slow back down to normal before he even tried to speak again. "I see..."

The two men started talking once more about what speeds up the cursed cells of the Demon Dog and what can slow them down. Caltan still believed that there was nothing the other man would actually be able to do but also decided that he would let him try what he could.

"I told you before, Herr Caltan... Everyzhing happens for a reason... Me being brought here vas not necessarily for Blayze... I do believe I was brought here to help you find a cure for your curse, und I vill do everyzhing in my power to help you."

Caltan nodded his head in acceptance. "Alright."

"I do need to ask you somezhing first... If you are busy und I need comparison answers... Will I be able to ask Core for her help? To run ze scenarios for me..."

"Tell ya what... I'll give you clearance to access what you need and to run your simulations. Since you won't have anywhere private to work on this, you can use this room."

"Danke... Zat vill be useful. Now... Is Cal zhis creature?"

"No... He's another part of me... One created for defensive purposes, per say."

"So, he is a separate personality of you..."

"Yeah..."

"Is zat vhy your eyes change as vell?"

"No.. Kinda but not really... That's also the curse trying to take over."

"Ahh..."

"Before this happened, I was a strong psychic but since then..."

Rein nodded his head then pointed out bluntly. "You are still able to use your telepazy."

Caltan looked at Rein with a raised eyebrow. "Yes."

"You may not have said anyzhing but I can tell."

"I could say the same, Doc."

Rein looked at him in confusion. "I am not a telepaz."

"Don't play coy with me, Doc... I saw you and Engie both hold a conversation with no words spoken and then with me."

"I vouldn't say I'm a telepaz.. I read zhere body language und zhere expressions. It'll pop in mein head on vhat zey _might_ be thinking." Rein explained as best as he could.

"Welcome to the beginning stages of telepathy... Isn't it maddening?"

"Actually, it's not zat bad."

"Just wait... It'll get worse."

"Wunderbar..." Rein said sarcastically, throwing his hands in the air.

Caltan couldn't help but smile then started looking around. "If you believe you can do this then you must work fast... We don't have much time... I mean, you have time just..."

"I understand... I vill start tomorrow... After zat paint var zhing..."

"Okay."

"First... Sleep... Ve'll need it."

"Agreed. Night Doc."

"Gute Nacht, Herr Caltan." Rein called out as he deactivated the lock and walked out.

Caltan watched the Medic walk out and wondered to himself if the other man will be able to accomplish the task he had set upon himself. "We can only hope." He said as he himself walked out to go to sleep.

A slight crackle mixed with a low hum could be heard as Michael decloaked. He was sitting upon the catwalk looking over at the door that the two men had just exited. *Medic? What are you up to now?* He thought to himself. He waited a moment longer then stood up. He opened his disguise kit and pulled out his newest mask and put it on before entering the room. "Core, I forgot to do a few things." He said in Caltan's voice, standing where he needed to be for the scan.

Once the scan completed, Core's voice came alive. "What can I do for you, Caltan?"

Michael smiled as he gave the commands to bring up several different files and printed them all off before finally deciding to move to watch the videos stored.


	12. Chapter 12

"Fifteen minutes Everyone!" Zoe shouted out as she ran through town, her sombrero holding firmly on top of her head to block the sun. "Places! Catapults at the ready! And whatever you do... Don't Get Hit!"

Rein looked around confused as others were running about, getting in position.

"What's up, Doc?"

Rein turned his head seeing the white faced woman only inches from him. Taking a step back from the hyper girl he finally answered. "I don't know vat to use."

"Oh! Is that all?" She reached over her shoulder pulling an odd looking gun from behind her. "Here... It's easy to use. Just point and shoot. It's fully loaded and here's an extra clip... Don't get shot, Herr Gottmund."

Before Rein could question her on how she knew his last name or on anything else for that matter, she was gone.

"No, no, no! Use this. Paint is flammable, remember?"

Blayze had time enough to look up and see Zoe running off before looking back down to his hands. What resembled a flare gun was now nestled in his hands, his own flare gun, on the other hand was now missing.

"Five Minutes!"

Cal grinned wide as his hands started moving around a board.

"Cal... Whatcha doin'?"

"Getting ready." He then pulled a large gun from behind him.

"A submachine gun, Cal? No real bullets, right? This isn't a real war..."

"It's paint... Not promising it won't hurt just a little bit though." He grinned again causing Zoe to shake her head.

"One Minute!" She hollered then looked back at Cal. "No jumpin' the gun... Fair and square."

"Aww... You're no fun."

Zoe smiled then hollered out once more, "FIRE!"

Paint balls flew back and forth across the designated war area, paint splattering everywhere. Children were laughing as they ducked behind boulders to elude the Coalition's fire then taking turns to peek out, firing with their slingshots. "Got One!" a small boy hollered out happily, turning around to give his Dad a thumbs up only seconds before getting tagged in the back of the head, green paint mixing in with his dark brown, almost black hair. "Ugh... They got me..." He groaned, falling to the ground and pretending to be dead. The other children watched the show of their friend being taken down by defeat, and looking to each other with wide eyes which quickly squinted down. "We shall avenge you!" One girl hollered out as all the kids ran out from behind the boulders, firing away as they ran towards the soldiers, screaming out their war cry which startled and confused some of the men into stopping to see what was going on.

Zoe was laughing at the sight before her then quickly noticed the other soldiers were moving in fast. "Just a little bit further..." She said to herself, grinning menacingly. "Just a little more... CATAPULTS NOW!" She screamed.

Globs of white paint flew over their head, covering two thirds of the Coalition troops that were left, causing them to all bow out gracefully from the war. The remaining soldiers, stunned by the turn of events cried out their own battle cry as they started running through the field, dodging the globs that were still flying through the sky.

"MY TURN!" Cal hollered happily as he started running his hands over what looked like a wooden board with several nails sticking up and wires running from them.

Several huge explosions were heard going off almost simultaneously. A plume of sky blue filled the area and slowly rising into the air with a madman's laugh ringing through it. Once the plume settled, Cal reached into his pocket, taking out a detonator and pushed the button which in turn caused another explosion, this time being of the color pink but a lot smaller than the others.

"A smiley face Cal?! And you didn't even use our colors... Really?"

As the last small pink plume settled down, it drew a tongue sticking out from the mouth of the blue face.

Zoe jumped down, running through the confused looks of both the Coalition and her townspeople. "General Winters!" She hollered out then suddenly stopped in her tracks as guns were raised, pointed straight at her. She raised her hands, eyes wide as she tried to calm the blue painted soldiers down. "Whoa, whoa, whoa... Hold on there... War time is apparently over... We both lost."

"Lower your weapons men and hit the showers." Came the gruff voice of their General. The soldiers lowered their weapons and turned towards the base, seemingly happy that they could get the wretched paint off. Winters stepped up closer to Zoe, a sour grimace showing his disapproval of the war's outcome.

Zoe tried not to laugh as she looked up at the man now adorning a sky blue look instead of his usual black. "Sorry Ryan..." She started off softly once his men were out of earshot. "I didn't know Cal was gonna play too... Well... I knew he was gonna join but I didn't know he was going to do things his way... But for all purposes noted, it was a good battle and it taught us a valuable lesson." She giggled, smiling brightly.

"And what lesson would that be, Nocturn?" The General grumbled, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Aww, so formal..." Zoe playfully pouted before smiling once again and continuing. "Well... There are really no real winners in war... Especially when a single crazed man can take out both sides all by himself." She chuckled softly.

"Seems like you and Cal are the only two not covered in paint..." General Winters observed, still not happy with the play of events.

"Of course not... You think my brother would actually want to kill me?"

"I suppose not..."

"Well... Not purposely anyway... Unless I really ticked him off and even then hopefully he would spare my life..." She said, shrugging her shoulders then smiling again seconds later. "We should do this again sometime... When Cal isn't around... That way we can keep it fair."

The General nodded his head then looked up at her, his head tilted slightly. "We were wondering... Why didn't our landmines detonate?"

"Landmines? You had landmines?"

"Well... It wasn't you..."

"That's not a fair thing to do..." Zoe pointed out with a pout.

"You had the same chance to do it as we did..."

"We yeah... but..." She turned to look around, sighing heavily. "Guess Cal had the same idea..."

General Winters turned towards the rest of his men, hollering out. "Hit the showers... War's over." He turned back to Zoe and grinned. "Let us know when you want a rematch." He said then walked off towards his base.

Zoe smiled as she returned to her side, giddiness running through her veins. "Great Job Everyone! General wants a rematch sometime in the future."

Cheers and groans alike could be heard as everyone started shuffling home.

"You might want to take a shower! Don't know what Cal put in the blue paint!" She called out, warning her people then turned towards Cal. "And you, dear brother, are not invited to that one... Speaking of... Did you mess with their la-"

"Hold that thought," Cal said, raising a finger. Reaching into his other pocket, he took out another detonator, pushing the button with a smile on his face.

Zoe spun around when another explosion rang out, coming in the direction of the Coalition base. A huge green plume lifted high into the air leading in two rows up to the Coalition base gates and the entire front area of the gated section. The sky blue and white painted soldiers now being covered in their own war paint. Her eyes went wide, her mouth dropping open slightly before turning to look back at Cal. "Did you..." She stopped herself, shaking her head. "Nevermind... Now, where is your Frenchman? He lied to me..." She growled, her eyes slitting menacingly.


	13. Chapter 13

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

 _From the vantage point of the Core surveillance camera Caltan rushes into the core room throwing his entire weight into the door before engaging the deadlock system, a second passes before his voice is heard, somewhat strained over the audio systems before slumping against the door._

 _"SysTac there are human lives in danger, engage localized lockdown procedures and threat assessment protocol"_

 _A soft metallic voice sounding out from a disembodied speaker, after only a moment of silence responds without any inflection of emotion or concern._

 _"Command confirmed Mr. Caltan, please state the nature of the present emergency and I will begin my calculations"_

 _Caltan's voice can be heard, still strained by whatever it was that had happened outside of this room, just barely audible over the sound of the supercomputer's cooling fans._

 _"The curse is kicking up again, and we have guests... begin psychometric analysis and terahertz full body scan, NOW!"_

 _Silence would have dominated the large room had it not been for the audible hum and clicks of the supercomputer's thinking, from behind Caltan a heavy clank could be heard while the lights in the room turn a bright crimson and the Core's terminal faded on in a brilliant white coloration._

 _"Very well, proceed to the terminal and begin psychological testing. I will initiate a full body scan once you get there"_

 _Obviously wincing as he tries to stand Caltan slowly drags himself to his feet, barely getting his balance under him before walking slowly down the catwalk towards the core control terminal, seeming to curse under his breath; something about not building a PDA. His movement alone triggering a new chorus of clicks and hums from SysTac's processors spread throughout the room seemingly calculating what every movement, down to the faintest twitch, could mean._

 _After a few brief seconds the weakened man managed to get to the terminal, if only to prop himself up with it before beginning the psych test SysTac has compiled for him. A dull thrum, faint at first but growing to be easily felt throughout the room as laser tracking grids spring to life from their hiding places throughout the room._

 _Caltan ignoring the blinding lights and almost deafening noise, knowing the room is sealed to sight and sound continues with the evaluation, his fingers flying over the back projected keyboard as he hurries to finish this as quickly as possible. Almost seeming to beg, pray even, that the results of either test come back in the negative. Finishing the seemingly endless questions though he just stands there leaning on the durable smartglass terminal waiting for the scans to complete._

 _It seems like for Caltan it took forever but when in reality mere seconds passed before SysTac's voice was heard once again._

 _"Scan complete... Cell corruption by body mass has reached twenty three and four tenths percent, nanite levels are depleted to eighty percent of safe levels, all remaining nanites are working to limit further spread of corrupted cells."_

 _Slouching slightly Caltan's head dropped visibly as his hands clamped down on the terminal's edge, again his voice barely audible over the sounds of the supercomputer._

 _"How long?.. SysTac, calculate how long until complete cell corruption utilizing known variables."_

 _The cold voice, without even the courteous of a pause, replied to his inquiry._

 _"I already have. Assuming nominal magic absorption, continued decline of your nanite colony, and mild to moderate stress levels. You have twelve weeks before your cell corruption becomes untreatable, and after that time elapses you would only have approximately two weeks before the exponential growth of corrupted cells results total cell conversion"_

 _Caltan appears to sigh in relief before he speaks "That's not too bad then, we're only five or six weeks from Green's Burrow even heading back down to drop off Fluffy, we can go back to base and I can stock up on fresh nanites before anything bad happens."_

 _"I hate to be the bearer of bad news" SysTac interrupted "but even assuming you keep your nanites at optimal levels, you're running low on time. At most you've only got two and a half years before you're no longer Caltan Zerda and become whatever it is you're changing into."_

 _"Agh, I know, I know... We just have to stall until we find a cure. And if that's the worst of it then we're doing fine."_

 _"It isn't, the corruption has spread to your frontal lobe, a fact confirmed by psychiatric analysis. Your mental stability is degrading, and your nanites dare not attack it directly, only delays it's further spread."_

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

"That's enough for now, Core. Shut it down."

All monitors started shutting off, stopping the video from the first time Caltan had met the small group back in the Changing Lands.

Michael, still wearing the mask of Caltan, walked out of the room with an arm full of files before he stopped right outside the now closed doors and took off the mask, resulting in a cloud of smoke forming around him as he turned back into his normal, smug self then proceeded downstairs to the rec room where the other guys were now showered and sitting at the round table.

"Gentleman! We have a problem." He announced, slamming the files down on said table.

The team, confused yet wide eyed stared at the files then looked back to Spy except for Rein, who was less than pleased by Michael's discoveries. He saw Caltan's name on a particularly thick one, picked it up and opened it. Upon skimming through the contents he too looked at the Spy. "Have you looked at zhese?"

"Every file before you, I have read."

Rein's jaw clenched as he set the file next to his chair. "Zat is unfortunate... Zhere are some files... Zat you might vant to forget."

"Docteur... You do realize what sort of grave danger we're all in..."

"I do... Zat is vhy I have offered him... my help." Rein stated, the still displeased look set upon his lips and in his eyes as well.

"When were you going to tell ze rest of us?" Michael questioned, cocking his eyebrow in return.

"Zhis is a patient/doctor confidentiality sort of situation. Zhis information..." He said, waving to the file beside his chair now, "nobody needs to know."

The other three men were looking back and forth between Rein and Michael, forgetting about the rest of the files before them as the tension grew thicker in the room.

"I have said zhis before und I vill say it vunce again... Ve vere brought here for a reason... Und I zink I have found zat reason."

"What kinda danger are you talkin' about?" Dell asked in his thick southern drawl as he shifted in his seat. "Ya know, I can understand the whole patient/doctor deal but this is... danger?"

"Well... I can sit here all day an' tell you or you can read zhis file." Michael said, pointing out one of the many files. "Zhere has been cities that have come up... depopulated... Whenever our... host... has rolled into town."

Rein's jaw clinched yet again, trying to refrain from grinding his teeth.

Dell started looking through the file Michael had pointed out with Eugene looking over one shoulder and Blayze looking over the other.

"Holy Hell in a handbasket... Umm..." Dell started, his mouth agape and his eyes wide.

"Zhough I do not fully agree wiz ze Docteur's persistence in ze matter, I vill not disclose exactly what or how... It's suffice to say... Zat is ze work of a man."

"You talkin' about this was just one man?" Engie asked in shock.

"One man... Occasionally wearing a suit of armor." Spy explained to Dell before glancing over at the glaring, tensed Medic who was now drumming his fingers on the table.

"Now... Zat isn't ze only files. Since I can not disclose your patient... Perhaps some of his activities... or perhaps his family an' cohorts. A water nyx, some sort of dragon dog named Zarak... His sister, well known vampire hunter assisted him in the destruction of at least two cities. His ozzer sister, a known sociopath who has been, to quote from his own computer, Fucking wiz ze DNA of everyzhing in ze south of this country. His bruzer, a well known warlord in ze north, known as ze, to quote, Canadian Devil. Some sort of Folk Hero to ze Quebecians... Whatever zhey mean by zat. One... Oh... He has quite a convenient number of bruzers an' sisters, I would say. One, Smith... David Smith. A wizard like our dear Merasmus, teaching ozzer people to be wizards in a town named, Lazlo, northeast part of ze country. An' a Darrel Dixon, who has been, to again quote his own computer, taking an' rerouting Coalition Troops wherever he deems fit. He's been stealing soldiers... trained soldiers." Michael was explaining as he riffled through the folders.

"The Coalition, we already know... Hell in Medic's words... are Nazis." Dell pointed out, shrugging his shoulders.

"Zat is exactly what his files say as well. He has an entire... Well, you can say, book written up about zhem."

"Well... If he's rerouting 'em, maybe he's tryin' to keep 'em from hurtin' people or destroyin' places that they don't need ta be." Dell added, getting nods from the two men behind him. "Can't blame him for that."

Michael sighed heavily, trying to get his point across. "Zat isn't ze problem... Ze problem is he's destroyin' ze lives of zhese soldiers every time he reroutes zhem. Entire transports come home to be shot as zhey have violated orders."

"Oh..."

"Known cases of zhese soldiers happen weekly now."

"Whoa... Guess they can't get along with 'em like his sister, huh? Oh! You missed the paint ball fight!" Eugene said, literally bouncing in place.

"A razzer unfortunate consequence."

"Yeah... We both lost..." Dell sighed, disappointed.

"How does both sides lose a war?" Spy asked, confused.

"Cal..."

"Pardon?"

"Cal!" Engie said louder.

"The Manic?"

"Yep... You know, we had the white... Coalition had the green... Apparently sometime last night, Cal went out and uhh... planted a lot of... uhh... loaded explosions... land mines."

"Zhis sounds vaguely familiar..."

"Everything went up in a sky blue plume... We were all blue..."

"Let me guess... He wrote his name in ze battlefield?"

"No... It was a smiley face with a pink tongue. Still tryin' ta figure out how he got pink..." Dell explained.

"Probably zrough a process we would razzer not understand or even want to understand."

"Yeah... It was kinda hard to get the paint off but... All the townspeople... The Coalition... Even their General... was blue... The only two I didn't see any paint on were Cal and Zoe. Even though she was yelling at him for doin' a smiley face and it not bein' their colors. So they're gonna have a rematch when Cal leaves town... From what I've understood anyway."

Michael groaned, shaking his head. "Perhaps zhey'll have a fair fight when ze madman is out of town."

"Yeah, maybe... Hey! Who is this Heidi gurl?" Dell asked, grabbing and opening the file to said person.

"Eh... Some sort of manipulator... Follows around ze Canadian Devil wherever he goes like a lost puppy." Michael spat out in disgust.

"Really?"

"Noted for breaking an' entering... Stealing valuables. It's all in ze file." He continued, flicking his hand to try and wave off the topic of the conversation.

"So she's... like a spy?" Dell questioned, lifting an eyebrow.

Rein couldn't help but smirk at how wound up Michael was getting over the girl.

"Not entirely... She lacks class all togezza."

"Looks like this file has touched a nerve or somethin'..."

"Such brutish tactics like pushin' a man out ze window an' to his death."

"Like you haven't pushed us out of windows before or off a ledge."

"Wiz a rope around you if you remember correctly. It's far more entertaining an' on our world, death is not permanent should I remind you?" He practically growled, cracking his neck to try and release the tension that was building.

"She can make them feel agony?" Dell asked, cringing at the thought as he read more about this Heidi woman.

"Oui... Some sort of neural chain reaction, I can guess... Sends zem writhing in pain. She uses zat to incapacitate zem before she kills zem."

"I bet you wish you had that..." Dell smirked.

"You would not _Believe_ how much sometimes. However, I wouldn't stoop so low as to use magic to do so."

"How can you say that when I've seen you usin' Merasmus' spells."

Michael huffed, cracking his neck once again. "What happens on Halloween is just fun an' games."

"And Full moons..."

"Haven't you ever noticed, I'm hardly ever out on full moons? I hardly work on zem... Normally about zat time... My Medic is done experimenting wiz me an' I have to Die in order to come back." Spy pointed out, the anger flowing off him like a summer heat.

Dell, Blayze and Eugene all shifted their eyes down and away from Michael, knowing just how cruel and sadistic the RED's Medic truly was. The air in the room suddenly became thick and suffocating, the tension uncomfortable.

Michael looked away from the three men and turned his sights back to Rein, who was sitting there, looking at the Spy dead on. "Now Docteur.. How long have you known?"

"Ze full story?"

"I'd settle for ze explanation on how long you've known we've been traveling wiz a psychopath." Michael spat out, his voice holding just how little he trusted their beloved Medic.

Rein lifted his chin, a show of defiance to the accusing tone. "Vell, I have known about ze multiple personalities for avhile now, but zat was zrough observation. Actually knowing vhat everyzhing vas... vas brought to my attention last night."

"So how long has ze computer known you as a registered user?" Spy asked, not believing the other man's story to be true.

"Zat vould be from zhis morning. He granted me access so I could help him try und find a cure." He explained with a completely serious expression and tone to match.

Silence filled the room. All eyes were moving from the Medic to Spy once again. Each of the two men never breaking eye contact with each other before Michael's voice finally broke the quiet, tension filled room.

"Docteur... May we speak in private about zhis?"

Rein nodded once and reached down to grab Caltan's file before getting to his feet. "Very vell..." He turned to the others before he added, "Ve vill be back."

The others nodded in understanding then turned to look at each other once both had left the room, heading upstairs.

"You don't think they'll try and kill each other... Do ya?" Eugene asked quietly, looking rather worried.

"Nah... I think they'll be alright... Though, I'm real curious as to what's in that file." Dell answered, twisting his lip in thought.

Blayze sighed, sitting back down in his chair. "I'm sure Doc has a good reason not to tell us... I would hope so anyway."

"Yeah..." Eugene and Dell said at once.


	14. Chapter 14

Rein and Michael made it upstairs to the barracks. As soon as Rein closed the door, Michael whirred around causing the Medic to jump back, hitting his back against the door.

"Have you lost your mind, Docteur?" Michael growled, glaring at the other man.

Rein calmed himself quickly before he offered Spy a grin. "Many vould say zat."

"Find a cure?"

"Ja." He answered, nodding at the still upset Frenchman.

"For an antagonistic curse?"

"Ja."

"On what ze computer itself said zat it was-"

"If I do not zhen it won't be just zhis vorld zat vill perish... But our vorld as vell." Rein interrupted, stepping away from the door, causing Michael to take a few steps back himself. "Zhis creature... Vill not Stop!"

"Zhis, I'm well aware of." Spy said, the anger now extinguished as he spoke softer and calmer than before. "He has contingencies upon contingencies to deal wiz 'It' an' he has yet to find a cure."

"He has been trying..."

"A man wiz nearly inexhaustible resources trying... and failing?" Michael questioned, his eyebrow lifting with the last word.

"Ja... He don't vant zhis creature just as much as ve don't vant to meet zhis creature."

There was a long silence as Michael was contemplating the last thing Rein had said. "Very well... What is it you plan to do?"

"Everyzhing zat I can."

"An' what can I do to help?"

Rein took a deep breath, letting it out slowly, all tension leaving his body as he shook his head. "Zat, I do not know yet... I, unfortunately, don't really know vhere to start. Taking blood samples from him, I've already been told, probably vill not vork... I vill try... Zat is ze first place zat I can... I have gained access to Core to run simulations. If I do zhis, vhat vill it do to ze cells? Speed zem up, slow zem down or kill zem all togezzer? I can not heal him or it vill speed zem up. Zat's vhy he can't be around ze medigun or ze dispenser vhen zey are on... He keeps ze nanites to keep zem slowed down."

"We must take a look at it... Zhere is somezhing in zhere zat seems a little bit off... Have you once seen in ze armory or in ze attached armor room zat suit of..."

"Ze Fire Demon?" Rein questioned, already knowing his answer was correct.

"Oui... Zat."

"I have not seen it for myself but zat suit of armor is vanted viz a head..."

"Oui... Zey want it, it's helmet an' it's pilots head."

"Ja... If he does still have zat armor zhen it's probably very vell hidden und I don't blame him for zat. Now, vhezer it's here, in ze Dune King or vhezer it's in Green's Burrow... I don't know. If you do find zat armor, I suggest zat you don't mess viz it... Considering he is not himself vhen he's vearing it, nor is he Cal."

"Zat was very apparent in ze videos."

"Ja... I saw zat."

"No man would turn into anyzhing like zat. Just like Blayze's little pyrotechnic display... Fire shouldn't shoot out of nowhere."

Rein couldn't help but laugh at the comparison or even the lack there of. "Blayze vould probably love zat suit of armor. Ze effects... not vhat it vould turn him into. Actually, vhen I first saw it, I thought about Blayze... I vas like, Ohh... He vould love zhis! Zhen I vas like... Nevermind, I don't vant him to see zhis."

"It's a horrible toy."

"Ja... Zat it is..."

"Well, ze ozzers must be wondering where we've gone off to." Michael brought up, trying to hint that they needed to rejoin the others. "Let's get back down zhere to ze ozzers an' keep an eye out for our -"

"Host." Rein finished for him, raising an eyebrow.

"I had a few more choice words zan zat... zan 'host'." Michael said, cracking his neck.

"Jus' remember somezhing." Rein started, his voice rising to make his point perfectly clear. "Michael, he has not done us vrong... As long as ve have been traveling viz him. Anytime he feels zat he's losing control, he leaves... Goes up to Core und locks himself in. He does not vish to harm us... In anyvay... So, choice vords are not rightly put."

"For our sake, I pray you are correct... Lead the way..." Michael finished with a wave of his hand.

Rein went to turn around and stopped, turning back to Michael before smiling. "After you." If there's one thing that Medic did learn while being in the Mann Co. wars was to never turn your back on a Spy, even your own would be questionable.

The two men headed back down to join the others in the rec room where each of their teammates had folders opened in front of them, reading.

Rein turned to Michael. "You missed your chance at being on ze Blue team today... Everyzhing vas blue... blue, blue, blue." He laughed.

"Well, for ze sake of my sanity, I wish I hadn't missed it."

"Ja... I know vhat you mean."

Rein turned his attention to everyone else as he sat down then looked to the Frenchman again. "I vish you vould have come to me first."

"Considering ze danger. To my boy an' yours..."

Rein glanced over at Blayze then Eugene before nodding. He understood Michael's reasoning for doing so. "I still vish you vould have come to me first... Especially if you knew I had access." He looked back over at Eugene who was wide eyed and shaking a bit before Medic told Spy. "I zink your boy is going to have nightmares tonight."

"Possibly." Michael sighed, watching his son. "Wait... Which file is he reading?"

Rein tried looking over then finally shrugged. "Probably ze vun on Zoe... Or vun of ze ozzer sisters... I can't tell. Maybe ze DNA girl..."

"Zhen he will have nightmares." Michael chuckled. "I regret tossing zhose down."

"Eugene... You might vant to put zat up." Rein warned him.

"Doc... I think she puts RED Medic to shame." The young man said shakingly before practically screaming out. "Have you seen these!?"

"Actually, nein... I have not. Let me see zem." Rein said, holding his hand out for the file.

Eugene handed over the file. "She makes monsters and stuff and it says she can't control them. If she can't control them then why does she make them? What if we ran into them and she can't control them and they try to gobble us up or step on us or something?" He said quickly, his voice rising from imaginative fear.

Rein had to turn his head to hide his smile then looked over at the boy's father.

"She's also in Florida.. Zhey are no where nearby." Michael simply explained, shaking his head.

"Doc said before that he wants to meet her." Eugene said quietly, his voice shaky once again.

"We are nowhere near Florida.. When ze good docteur decides to go he will tell us first."

"You sure about that?"

"Positive."

Dell shook his head, listening to the prior conversation before reaching over to pick up a green folder and flipping through the files inside, a smile forming on his face. "Well hell... Building bridges, digging wells, filtration systems, generators, settin' up ventilation systems... They've run around doin' all this. Even says here they've depopulated half the gunslingers in the west."

"Is zat a good zhing?" Rein asked confused.

"You've never met a gunslinger? Doc, some of the rowdiest folks become gunslingers. Happy enough to put a hole in ya before greetin' ya." He described as he was thumbing through the wanted posters. "Wow! I don't know these guys but by the looks of their wanted posters some of these folks were pretty nasty."

"See..." Rein said to Michael, trying to prove a point. "Zey are not bad people... Zey've done bad zhings, okay, like we haven't? Und most of ze time ze bad zhings happen vhen... Zey just happen..."

"Zey just happen in proximity to large populated cities."

"Zey can't help vhen a var just starts out... Can ve?"

"We are thrown into it... by our contracts."

"But can ve stop it? Vizout repercussions... Can ve stop it?" Rein asked, wanting so bad to hear the answer.

"Non, we can not."

"So, who's to say zat zhey can? Okay... For Eugene's sake und for yours, let's look at somezhing. zhis Vampire Dame, Zoe. She is not a vampire. She looks like a vampire but she does not need ze blood. Ze sun harms her... Just like a vampire. Holy water does not. Silver does not, unless she's shot in the heart, head or other vital area, just like a normal human being. But ze ozzer zhings zat kills vampires does not harm her, except ze UV from ze sun. She lives in a small town, vhich ve are all in, right next to a Coalition base. zhough it is small, it is still a Coalition base. Ze Coalition is vun of ze factions zat vants zem dead... Correct?"

"Oui... Zat is correct."

"But Zoe und ze General of zhis Coalition base has vhat Caltan has even called a pissing contest. Zey jus' had a paint var... Zhen ze blue went up und came down into a smiley face, tongue und all... She got down from vhere she vas, next to Cal, und valked out to ze middle of ze battlefield. Everybody else had already stopped shooting cause zey didn't know vhat had happened. She called out ze General. She vas surrounded by ze Coalition, guns pointed at her... Even zhough zey vere only paintballs, zat vas zheir first reaction, point ze guns at her. Ze General comes out und gets zem to lower zheir veapons, vhich zey did... Zey are going to have a rematch, anozer paintball var after Cal leaves... If she vas zat much of a danger, don't you zink zhis General vould have already had her decommissioned?"

"Zat would be a logical explanation."

"Zhen vhy let her live if she's zat much of a danger? She protects zhese people of zhis town from ze vampires... Und viz zat said... She protects ze Coalition from zem too... Even zhough she probably vould not admit it... She is not bad. She is a protector. Caltan is not bad. He is a protector. Most, if not all of ze bruzers und sisters are protectors of somezhing. Even ze bruzer who works in ze Coalition... I can probably tell you right now... Ze people he saved probably outweighs ze Coalition troops zat vere executed. Zhese bruzers und sisters... Are not bad. Even ze vun who does ze DNA... If I had ze power to just say... Hey! I'll take a little of zhis und a little of zat und put zem togezzer to see what it makes... I vould do zat!"

"But would you intentionally make monsters?"

"Who says it's intentional? She's a girl of science. Zat may be just vhat comes out just like ze little dragon in ze fridge."

Michael looked at Rein in confusion, his eyes wandering over to the small refrigerator the Medic had just pointed at.

"You haven't gone into ze fridge? Really? Go open ze fridge!"

"Do I want to?" Michael asked, a little uneasy about the situation.

"Jus' don't vake it up."

"Don't wake it up..."

"It's hibernating. Ze cold keeps it asleep."

"Very well." Michael went to the refrigerator and opened it up, seeing the small dragon inside for the first time. His eyes grew large in size before turning his head to look at Rein. "Why would he-"

Rein put his finger to his lips. "Shhh..."

Michael softly closed the door back before starting again. "Why would anyone keep a dragon in zeir refrigerator?"

"Zat, I do not know... I have not asked." Rein shrugged. "Ve have all found it... Now you have seen it too. I can't believe you have been on here as long as ve have und you've never looked in ze fridge. You bein' a Spy, poking around in everyzhing else on zhis zhing."

"When you work on ze RED team you know not to look in ze refrigerators... You never know what's in ze icebox."

"Zat I can see, especially viz your Medic."

"Oui... Talking heads beside ze orange juice."

"Ze head of... our Spy." Medic said, feeling a little uncomfortable with the subject now.

"Exactly."

Without any warning at all to the small group, Cal suddenly entered with his happy, hyper attitude.

"Hey Guys! What's u-... What on earth? Huh... Somebody's been busy..." He said as he looked at all the files on the table. "Hold on, I'll be right back!"

Cal took off upstairs leaving the five men, all with racing hearts. Looks of worry, fear and confusion riddled the team's faces.

Rein looked over at Michael, trying to calm himself.

"Where would he be going?" Michael asked, his adam's apple bobbing noticeably through his nervousness.

"Zat I do not know... But at least he's going up und not down. Even zhough if he vanted to kill us, he'd just take out ze gun he keeps in his armor."

"I don't know if we should be worried or not..." Michael's eyes swept over the files on the table then looked back over towards the stairs, waiting.

"Neizzer do I."

Moments later, Cal came back into the room, holding his own stack of files. "Okay!" He hollered, slamming the files down on the table.

Medic looks at the name of the one on top, then pulled it over to him. "Michael..."

"What?" Michael asked as he took the folder from Rein. "Zhis is impossible! Zhis is my personnel file from RED."

"Zhis is my personnel file from BLU." Rein said, looking through the folder. "I zhought zat... RED und BLU didn't exist on zhis planet."

"None of those things exist here!" Cal told them smiling.

"Zhen how did you get our files?" Rein asked curiously.

Cal shrugged, "Well actually, that's easier than you think. Who here has looked at their personnel files?" He looked around the small group, pointing at each one several times over. "You, you, you, you and not you. He looked at your file. He also looked at your, and yours, and yours."

"I've seen all my teams... Not his." Rein announced, pointing over to Michael.

"You're telling us what we already know. How did you get our files?" Spy asked again.

"From you." Cal answered simply, still sporting his smiling face.

"Telepazzy..." Rein said, looking at Cal.

"Yep. You know how you can get a song stuck in your head and it keeps playing and playing and playing? Important information is kinda like that too. You guys reading those files there reminded you of your own personnel files. And then you were thinking of... Wait... What was it... Oh yeah! Gravel Pit! The first time you were sent to Gravel Pit."

"Clever... So, you are not mad?" Rein asked trying to hide his nervousness and confusion.

"Not really." Cal shrugged watching the confusion deepen on Rein's brow. "What were you expecting me to get angry?"

"Ja."

"Over what? Wasting Paper? You could have fit all that on the screen right there. Just tell Core to print it out on the screen. But I know you guys wouldn't have printed that up..."

"Nein..."

"Core has a lock on most of that. You!" Cal pointed towards Rein, his voice raised causing Rein to start shifting in his seat uncomfortably. "Wouldn't have printed that up... Nor you or you..." He said, pointing at Blayze and Dell as he started moving around the table. "Or... Well you might if you got bored enough." pointing at Eugene. "So, that leaves... you." Cal was now standing right behind Michael's chair, placing both hands on the chair and tilting it back on two legs, looking down in Spy's startled eyes. "How did you trick Core?"

Michael's breath quickened in fear as he stared up into the madman's eyes then looked over at Rein for some assistance but found the other man's attention was fully on Cal or more precise, Cal's body language.

"Uhh... Hold on a minute... I think Caltan told me this one... Uhh... Little paper mask, psychic compulsion... Didn't know that worked on computers." He stated in slight confusion.

"He did have to vork on it... a lot." Rein mentioned, still watching closely.

"Well, that probably explains why Core had thought I'd walked in there thirty three times in one night... Okay!" He said, letting go of the chair and letting it fall back forward harshly, causing Michael to reach for the table so not to hit it as he bounced forward.

"Really Michael? Zhirty zhree times? In vun night?" Rein asked the Spy in disbelief.

"Practice makes perfect." Michael shrugged, after gathering himself again.

"Nein... Vell... Ja... But you vere being persistent."

"But of course."

"Guessing by the fact that you guys are still here, you're not running scared yet..." Cal pointed out, a little surprised that this team is still sticking with them even after finding out all the information that they had not only on him but everyone else's as well.

"Michael und I have had our private talk about some zhings..."

"Oh! Okay!" Cal shouted then leaned over, looking into Rein's eyes. "You're easier than the other guy. No offense. He was a psychic a long time ago."

"Ze ozzer guy?"

"Yeah... Caltan."

"Oh... Caltan. Zat's because he has blocks... I have not developed zhose yet."

"I'd keep working at it." Cal told him with a nod. "It's like a brick wall at the moment."

"So zhese brick walls are nuzzhing to you?"

"Actually, not really. Plate steel works better. Other stuff doesn't work so well. Try adamantium."

Eugene's head perked up, smiling. "Hey! I know that one! Like Wolverine's bones and claws!"

"Bingo!" Cal smiled, pointing over at Eugene.

"Wolverine?" Rein asked, looking extremely confused.

"Yeah! He was tricked to do the surgery and all and they-"

"Please tell me zhis is not vun of your comics."

"Well, yeah..."

"Zhen I don't vant to hear it." Rein grumbled, shaking his head.

"The movies were good too." Cal added.

"Movies!? When did they make movies?" Eugene was practically bouncing in his seat at the thought.

"Around... 2004 on this planet... I think."

"Aww..." Eugene slumped, disappointed. "That's so far away on our planet..."

"But you're not on your planet... You're on this one."

"Can we watch 'em?"

"Sure... Core, bring up... Hell, just cue all the X-Men movies and let them pick... Wait bring up all Hollywood movies and if they want to watch one, play it."

"You want me to take orders from them?" Core's voice rang out.

"Well... Yeah... On the movies anyway." Cal said, his eyes turning more manic than the normal that Medic had previously observed.

"Cal..."

"Yeah? What?"

"Vere is Caltan?"

"Somewhere behind a blind curtain in there somewhere... I don't know."

"He needs to come out."

Cal groaned out loud, obviously not happy with the idea. "Alright, fine. Well at least I got to blow something up today." Cal went to walk of then stopped, turning back around to look at Michael. "Oh wait... Hang on... Umm..."

"Michael." Rein helped.

"Oh Michael! You might want to be running."

Confusion settled on the already nervous eyes as Michael simply asked, "Why?"

"Cause Sis is lookin' for ya... Something about lye... I don't know what soap has to do with anything..."

"Why should I run from your sister?" He asked curiously.

"She seemed a little bit upset."

"Because of soap?"

"Lye... Wait! Do you think she meant lie as in lying or do you think she actually meant lye, like to make soap with?"

"Actually, I zink she mentioned somezhing about him lying..." Rein said, looking over at Michael.

"OH! Well that's a very serious offense... You should be running."

"I will heed your warning..." Spy said cautiously.

Rein could only grin at Cal's warning and Spy's expression at the moment.

"Alright... If you don't mind me, I have to go stare at fractals for a minute or so until Caltan wakes up. See you guys later!"

"See you later, Cal." Rein returned then looked over at Michael as Cal headed for the stairs.

"Mon Dieu... Are you certain she's not a vampire?"

"I'm certain." Rein answered.

"Good, zhen zhis should still work." Michael said as he activated his Cloak and Dagger watch, going invisible.

"Do you seriously zink zat going invisible is going to help you?" Rein asked the empty air.

"Uh, Doc... I don't think he's standin' there anymore." Dell pointed out, looking at where Michael had been just a moment ago.

"I'm not looking at any particular place now am I?" Rein sighed then grinned as he started formulating a plan. "So, he's going to play chicken... What's wrong, Michael? Zink a little girl is going to hurt you?" Again, Rein's questions go unanswered. "What a fine fazzer figure you have now, don't you Scout?"

Eugene looked over at Rein then lowered his head slowly.

"Blayze... Let me get my medigun und you get your flamezhrower."

"Doc... Does your medigun actually work on Michael?" Dell asked in a serious tone.

"Hmm... I don't know... Haven't tried... You know..."

"Now that ya think about it... Might not be the best idea?"

"Vell, zat is not vhat I vas zinking... I vas zinking zat I do need to try ze medigun on ozzers, besides just us, to see if it vill vork... I may have to do surgery... Und have a dispenser so we can make more."

"I can do that."

"Spy... If you are in here... Ve do need to try ze medigun."

Silence met the ears of the four remaining men causing Rein to exhale loudly, shaking his head.


	15. Chapter 15

Blayze was in the kitchen when he heard the ramp lower in the hallway. Setting everything aside, he went to investigate.

"Thank you, Core." Came the female voice as she topped the ramp and entered the 'Dune King'. Upon seeing the man standing in the doorway of the dining hall, she smiled. "Blayze! My fire lovin' friend... How are you doin'?" She asked as she walked up to him, hugging him to his surprise.

"Very well... Thank you." He said softly, returning the hug.

Zoe finally released the hug, keeping it going longer than planned after she received the feel of longing acceptance from him, and stepped back, still smiling. "You know... I have some interesting flares that you might be interested in... When you get a chance, I can show 'em to you... But first... Do you happen to know where I can find your little Frenchman?"

Blayze's eyes were lit up at the mention of the flares but just as quickly died down at the mention of the whereabouts of their resident Spy. "I don't know... Cal told him you were looking for him and he disappeared... literally."

"Ahh... So, he's hiding... Gotcha. I've always loved playin' hide-n-seek." She grinned, looking around the hallway. "I... I'll talk to you later Blayze... Promise."

The fire starter smiled as he reentered the dining area and made his way back to the kitchen.

Zoe made her way through the 'Dune King', room by room, level by level until she reached the rec room where Eugene and Dell were playing pool. "Evening Boys!" She said cheerfully after the younger of the two had taken his shot.

Eugene jumped, looking at her wide eyed and frozen to the spot.

Dell smiled back at Zoe, nodding once. "Evening Ma'am... Must say though, it's been a long time since I've been called a boy." he chuckled.

Her smile widened at Dell before she started walking closer to Eugene. "What's wrong, Eugene? Still scared of me?" she asked, putting her arm around the younger man's neck.

Shaking and tense, Eugene went to speak, his voice high pitch at first before clearing his throat to start again. "No No... No... Not scared... I'm good."

Zoe pulled her arm away, taking a step back from the Scout, her eyes narrowing. "A liar like your father... Not a good trait to have. Speaking of... Where is your father?"

Eugene gulped, backing away a few steps before attempting to answer. "I... I don't know... God's honest truth..." he said, shakily, inching closer to Dell.

A smile graced Zoe's lips as she kept her eyes trained on their Scout. "Now, that wasn't so hard... Just remember, Eugene... The truth shall set you free." She glanced over watching Dell nod his head at her last comment then turned her head back to the younger man. "But really... Why are you so scared of me? Have I done something to you?" Her voice was low, no menace was expressed.

Eugene sighed, looking down for a bit before picking his head back up to look at her. "No... You haven't... It's just... Well... The whole vampire look creeps me out..." He explained.

Zoe nodded her head in understanding, staying quiet for a moment then exhaled. "I wasn't always like this..." She started then turned as she felt someone close to her.

"Sorry to interrupt... Continue Bitte..."

She smiled up at Rein as he walked around her, taking a seat at the table. She walked over, motioning to the other two to join them. As they all took their seats she began again.

"As I was saying... I wasn't always like this... I was normal like you guys. See..." She reached in her sling bag, pulling out a metal case and opened it. She took the picture laying on top and placed it on the table. "That's what I used to look like... Granted the sun still bothered me then... But not like it does now... Now it's deadly."

Rein picked up the picture, comparing it to the woman before him then passed it to Dell, linking his fingers in front of him once he was free of the photo.

Dell did the same then passed it to Eugene, who looked at the picture then up to her before asking, "What happened?"

"We ran into the wrong person, you can say. He tried to make it where we wouldn't fit in no matter where we went..."

"That's horrible..." Dell mumbled softly.

"Yeah... But you know what they say. Paybacks are a bitch..."

"Ya'll killed him, didn't ya?"

Zoe nodded, sighing heavily. "We gave him a chance to reverse it... twice."

"Twice?" Eugene asked.

"Yeah... Once before we killed the town and again before we killed him..." She looked around at the men's expressions and smiled. "Honestly, I'm not much for violence... But this world... Sometimes you can't help it... You've got your vampires, gunslingers, Coalition..."

"Speaking of..." Rein interrupted, "If you hate ze Coalition so much, vhy play games viz zhem?"

Zoe shrugs, looking down at the table. "Told ya... Not much for violence... If they don't bother me or my town then so be it... When I first got here, there was death on both sides... In town and on the base. I was walking around that evening, people were running... They saw a vampire roaming their town and one of General Winters men spotted me... Only a few minutes before sunset. Everyone was confused and scared. The General came out himself with two of his soldiers and confronted me... Weapons were aimed at my heart and head... The General recognized me from my wanted posters but before he could make an arrest or just have me shot on sight, something was coming up fast behind them... I brought out my crossbow from behind me and jumped to the side and fired it... At the same time, his men were firing on me... The one aiming for my head missed but the one that was aiming for my heart actually caught my arm when I had jumped. There was pain... A lot of pain... See, I'm not good with pain... My brothers tease me on that note... They went to fire again but the General stopped them. He made them keep the guns on me but told them to wait until he gave them word. He walked over to what I had just shot at and saw the vampire beast... dead. Needless to say, he was shocked and was asking me why I did it... Why I saved him... All I could do was shrug... somewhat... I was holding my right arm where I had gotten shot, clinching my teeth together. He asked again... I told him I just felt it was the right thing to do... Then there were more of them... Vampires that is. My adrenaline started pumpin' and I completely forgot all about my arm and the General and I fought side by side that night... We killed all the creatures that came near the town and the base. It seemed like it lasted for hours and when it was finally over, the General told his men to go fetch their doc... My adrenaline wore off pretty quickly once we stopped killin' the vampires and the pain was back... Worse than before... Their Doc came out but started complainin' cause it was too dark out there so they took me on base... I thought that was it... I'm done for... The Doc gave me some shot, which I can't stand needles..." she shivered at the thought. "and proceeded to treat the wound and then sewed me up... See..." She took off the poncho and pulled up her sleeve to show the men around her the scar that she still carried from that day. "The General let me go... He said that he owed me and that was the only reason he was letting me go free... When I walked back into town, I was swarmed within minutes. People cheering me, patting my back, so forth and so on... Then they asked if I would stay and protect them..." She sighed dramatically, shaking her head. "I couldn't let them down... They asked for my help and so... I'm here... still..." She smiled softly then continued. "The General or even myself would get bored and that's what started the back and forth bantering thing between us. Absolutely nobody gets killed... on either side and it keeps us all on our toes."

"But you hate the Coalition." Eugene repeated what Rein had said earlier.

"I do... They are 'this' world's Nazis of the present time. I disagree with everything they believe in... Everything they fight for or kill for... Everything they represent... Most people they aim at are innocents... They're just different... So therefore, I do hate the Coalition as a whole... But... General Winters himself is different... He can at least, somewhat, look past 'some' things especially when those 'some' things are helping to defend and protect him and his soldiers." She explained, leaning back in the chair.

"So... If you're not into into the whole violence thing... Why are you lookin' for my Dad?"

Zoe grinned, looking up at Eugene. "He owes me an explanation... Three ways to piss me off... One, mess with my family, this includes my extended family being the townspeople here... Especially since they think of me now as one of their own. Two, lie to me and three, steal from me... Other things make me mad too but those three... Those three actually raise my rage level to the extreme... And most know not to mess with me when that happens."

"I'll have to remember that." Eugene said then smiled. "Ya know... You're not so bad... Don't know why I was so scared of ya." he chuckled.

"Oh... I can be scary... Don't underestimate what I use to my advantage." She said, smiling big enough to show her fangs.

Eugene's chuckle died out, his eyes widening before he heard her laughter ring out, causing him to relax.

"I'm sorry, Eugene. I'll do my best not to try and scare you."

"It's okay... I'll get used to it."

Zoe stood up, walking around the table until she stood next to Scout. She leaned down giving him a sideways hug then ruffled his hair as she stood back up. "You're a good kid, Eugene... Don't change... Whatever you do... Whatever you go through here on this earth... Don't change."

The young man smiled, not even able to get defensive on being called a kid and said softly, "I'll try."

She smiled in return then looked over at Rein and Dell. "It was nice talkin' to ya'll... Even though I did most of the talkin'... Sorry, bad habit... especially when I meet new people... But I do hope we can do it again sometime... Just next time, tell me to shut up or something if I start rambling... I do want to learn more about you all... You're different than most of the people my brother picks up... Interesting... Unique..."

"You leavin'?" Dell asked as he stood up.

"Yeah... Still playin' hide-n-seek with the Frenchman and promised to show some of my toys to Blayze." She explained, glancing over at Rein. "You're very protective over him... I like that... Do me a favor though... Hug him more... He really likes hugs... Makes him 'feel' loved... 'feel' accepted and wanted. And don't worry... I'll keep him safe." She smiled.

"I vill do zat... und... I know you vill." Rein told her with a smile of his own.

Zoe left the rec room, heading upstairs as her search continued for the missing Spy.


	16. Chapter 16

A few hours had passed before Zoe looked up to the ceiling, sighing heavily. "Core... Any sign of that Michael guy?"

"Michael left the 'Dune King' before you even arrived, Miss Nocturn."

"What? Why didn't you tell me?"

"You did not ask."

Zoe rolled her eyes then inhaled sharply as a thought passed through her brain. "Wait! What time is it?" she asked, her heart rate increasing.

"It is precisely 20:17."

"What?! Oh Shit!" Zoe screamed out before turning around and running downstairs, yelling at Core to open the ramp. By the time she made it to the bottom floor, the ramp was only halfway down. She jumped off, landing hard on the ground. She winced at the pain but threw it aside when she heard the alarms. She pulled out her crossbow, making sure it was already loaded as she ran to the south side of town. "Michael! If you're out here, get somewhere safe! NOW!" She screamed out. As soon as she made it to the south tower point, she jumped up on the boulder that she always stood upon during these times and took aim. She could see them coming in fast and started firing her crossbow, killing several before having to reload. Several minutes later, after her and the town's people cleared out the first wave, Zoe looked off in the distance, noticing the second wave of vampires already on their way. "Flare Now!" She screamed out and only seconds later saw it fly over her head and landed spot dead in the middle of the charging nest. Fire spread out in a widening circle, retracted back again to it's starting point then shot upwards into the night sky. A bright orange hue covered the area as shrieks and squeals of pain filled agony was heard right before a momentary silence ensued. She quickly scanned the horizon once again, shooting at the few that somehow missed being trapped in the 'Rings of Hellfire' then nearly fell off the rock as one leaped up on the boulder where she was at, fangs bared. Not having time to reload the crossbow, she jumped down while reaching for the stake that she kept at her side. She looked up just as the beast was jumping down at her and thrust the stake up and into it's heart. She turned her head, closing her eyes and mouth as the blood splattered then just as quick, the creature turned to dust.

"That was the last one!" She heard from above as the noise from all the firing that had been going on ceased then moved from behind the bounder and scanned the area. "You okay Zoe?"

"Yeah... I'm good..." She replied then sighed heavily in relief when she didn't see any signs of more vampires heading their way. "It should be quiet for now... Alert me if you see anymore." She told the young man patrolling the South tower. After receiving a stern nod, she took off again to look for Spy. "Michael! This is not the time for games!" She hollered out, her frantic mind making it hard to concentrate. "It's dangerous out here at night!"

Even with her mind going ninety to nothing, worrying about the missing Frenchman, her adrenaline was slowing down which in turn slowed her down as the pain started shooting up her leg. She made it to the town square fountain and had to sit down. She missed the edge of the fountain and landed ungracefully on the ground, her fangs piercing the skin as she bit her bottom lip to cut off the scream.

A sound of static was heard just moments before a voice asked her softly, "Are you okay, Madame?"

She shook her head before looking up at Michael, tears threatening to spill over at any moment.

"May I?" he asked, kneeling down and holding out his hands.

Zoe nodded, biting down again and groaning as Michael helped her to her feet then started towards the 'Dune King'. "Core, open ze hatch an' alert Rein, s'il vous plait."

Core lowered the ramp and alerted Rein of Zoe's injury immediately as asked.

Rein quickly ran upstairs to the barracks and grabbed his medigun. He wasn't sure if it would work or not on her but it was worth a try. He got down to the first floor, a little out of breath, just as Michael and Zoe topped the ramp and entered the door. He gasped audibly at the sight of blood on her face, neck and poncho, his eyes wide. "Mein Gott."

The others were standing nearby, their eyes wide with concern as well, giving the three ample room.

"Sis? What happened?" Caltan asked from the doorway of the weapons room.

"Hide-n-Seek... Found out he wasn't... even in here... then asked Core... What time... it was... Jumped off the ramp... It was... ohh... OW! About halfway... down... Landed wrong... I guess... Then... Damn vampires... Was fine till... my adrenaline... gave out... Michael de-decloaked... Helped me..." She explained through the pain.

"Ve need to get her laid down." Rein told them then looked towards the stairs.

"Nope... Table's fine... Floor's fine..." She said as she let go of Michael and landed on the floor. She quickly bit down again, causing fresh blood to run down her chin, muffling her scream.

Everyone present went to help her and she shook her head, waving them off. "I... I'm... F-Fine..." She said then looked up at Rein. The pain now causing dizziness to settle in. Her eyes grew heavy just seconds before her body went the rest of the way down. Michael quickly caught the back of her head before it had a chance to hit the floor, laying it down softly then stood up and moved out of the way so the Medic could work without him being in the way.

Rein walked over and knelt down beside her, gently checking her leg and ankle for anything broken then grimaced once he did. "Zhis vill be painful..." he warned her briefly before he yanked down on her ankle and twisted, setting it back in it's rightful place.

Awakening quickly due to the immense pain, her scream filled the large APC, causing all but Rein to cover their ears.

"I am sorry." He said softly as he watched the tears fall from her closed eyes. His heart clenched, knowing it had to be done but hating the fact of it causing her so much pain. He stood up, flipping the switch on his pack then pulled the lever, praying that this would work.

The blue glow reached out to Zoe, surrounding her. Her breath caught as she felt the healing beams working. Only a couple of minutes passed by before Rein turned off the medigun and knelt back down beside her. "How do you feel?" he asked, his voice low.

Zoe laid there for a moment then opened her eyes to look up at Rein and smiled. "I feel... great... I think." She sat up, smiling as Rein quickly put down the medigun to help her get to her feet. "Thank you."

"You are velcome."

She bounced from one foot to the other a few times, trying out the ankle and smiled wider. "Yep... Definitely feel better. Thanks again, Rein." She said happily before throwing her arms around him.

Rein jumped, reaching out to grab her, thinking she was falling at first then calmed himself as he felt the calm, peaceful warmth rush through him. He returned the hug before pulling away, looking at her with a raised eyebrow. "Vas zat from you?"

Smiling, she nodded then confirmed the answer out loud. "Yeah... Sorry... Was making up for scarin' you."

"How did you do zat?"

She shrugged. "It's just something I do... I'm an empath." She watched his eyebrows scrunch together and felt the confusion roll off. "I can 'feel' what you 'feel' and I can cause you to feel certain emotions as well... Good ones usually come off as warm. Bad ones usually are cold."

"Interesting... Do you mind?" Rein asked, curious now on how she could do such a thing.

"Not at all..." She took a deep breath, clearing her own mind before starting with her first choice.

Rein shivered as the cold quickly enveloped him, his heart pounding in his chest and his breathing quickening. He felt like he wanted to run and hide somewhere safe. "F-Fear..." he whispered, still shivering. He saw her smile and nod before the next wave came. It was warm and had a tingly feel to it, almost ticklish. He couldn't help but laugh, a huge smile gracing his lips. "Happy!"

Zoe smiled bigger, nodding before reigning in the emotions, twisting them before throwing them back out.

The Medic actually took a couple of steps back, his facial expression already distorting as he lowered his head. His muscles tightened in his shoulders and back, a growl emanating from his chest and traveled up, his lips tightening into a snarl. He jerked his head up, glaring at Zoe before lunging towards her, hands reaching for her throat.

She quickly moved out of the way, killing off the emotion in the process.

After hitting the wall, Rein turned around, hands still raised then shook his head as the emotion left him. He blinked a few times and took a deep breath before looking up at her in amazement. "Zat vas anger... Very Strong Anger... I... I vanted to..." he shook his head again, clearing the last remnants from his mind before starting again. "I'm sorry..."

"It's okay... and yes, I know... I don't use that one much at all but I feel it a lot... This next one will be strong too..." She looked at the rest of the team before warning them. "Do not dare say a word..."

They nodded in response, their shocked expressions evident from the recent display from Medic.

She looked back at Rein, biting on her bottom lip before saying in almost a whisper, "I'm sorry..." She let the next emotion surround him, moving closer as she did so.

Tears welled up in Rein's eyes as a heaviness filled his very soul. Every part of his being felt as if a dark gloominess had taken over. He wanted to give up on anything and everything. He just wanted to die, to end it all. He brought his hands up to his face, his body seeming to crumble to the floor where it rocked back and forth. Darkness loomed all around then it was over.

Zoe leaned down, hugging Rein once again then reached up to wipe the tears from his face. "I'm sorry... I don't like that one either."

"Sadness... Depression..." He said softly, looking into her own teary eyes. "Mein Gott... That was powerful."

"Yeah... They can be... So... Has your curiosity been filled, Herr Gottmund?" She asked, smiling at the older man as she let go of him and stood back up, holding a helping hand out to him.

Rein took the offered hand and stood, nodding his head. "Ja... Danke, Zoe..."

"No problem." Zoe then turned to look at the others. "Blayze, you and me tomorrow, promise. Michael... Thank you for helping me tonight but you still owe me an explanation for earlier. The truth. Caltan... Wait... Where's Caltan?" She asked, looking around.

"He took off before ze Medic turned on ze medigun..." Michael explained, looking towards the stairs.

"Ahh... Okay... Well, got a long night ahead of me... vampires... Goodnight Boys. Sleep well." Zoe said with a wave then started walking towards the ramp. "Core, would you please?"

As the ramp was lowering, Blayze walked up beside her. "Can I help?"

Zoe looked over at the fire starter and smiled. "I don't mind... But, it is dangerous... Rein?" She turned around to look at the Medic.

Rein sighed heavily, looking between the two. "Sounds gute... I shall join you as vell."

"Umm... Okay..." She said, not really expecting the response Rein had given her. "Uhh... Blayze, flame thrower and flare gun... Rein... Not sure what you can use against them..."

"Zat crossbow on your back." He said, pointing it out. "Do you have anuzzer?"

"Yeah... You know how to use a crossbow?" She asked and got a nod for her answer. "Excellent!" she exclaimed, smiling happily.

Blayze ran upstairs and got suited up before grabbing his weapons and running back downstairs to where Zoe and Rein were waiting.

The other three men looked at each other, wondering if they should offer to help as well.

Zoe turned to look at the others, mixed emotions swimming through the air. "Guys... It's okay... Maybe another time... I'm gonna be nervous enough on keeping these two safe. I don't wanna have to worry about trying to keep all five of you out of harm's way... Really... We'll see you tomorrow. Alright? I do appreciate the thought though." She smiled then turned back to the two men beside her. "Alright... Let's go." She said, walking down the ramp.

She took them to a small stone building with only one door, made of concrete, and no windows. One side of the structure was painted black like most of the buildings in that area. She smiled at the two men following before unlocking the door and stepping to the side. "Welcome to my home."

The two men stepped into the darkness then was greeted with a warm glow of light that illuminated what looked like a living room.

"I would say make yourselves at home but... We're on a mission. Follow me, please." Zoe said as she led them through the living room into the combination kitchen, dining room and into the hallway. "First and third doors on the right are guest rooms. Second door is the bathroom. Straight ahead is the laundry room and this door... Is my bedroom." She pointed out as she moved through the only door on the left side of the hallway.

Both men followed, looking around in awe. Ceiling to floor bookshelves all around the room, completely filled, and a good size desk with a computer sitting on top. There was also a filing cabinet, a table that had a goblet, a mortar and pestle and several other items on it and a recliner.

"You said this is your bedroom?" Blayze asked, slightly confused.

"Yes... Why? Something wrong?"

"No... No... Well... There's no bed... Do you sleep?"

She smiled as she walked over to the recliner. "My bed. Now to why we're here." She walked over to a large bookshelf to the right side of the room. "Hmm... Storms, Shakespeare, Spooks..." She said, pulling on three different books.

The men looked on in surprise when the bookshelf started to move to the left, revealing an opening behind it.

"Good thing I remember the combination or we'd be blown to bits."

Two sets of eyes went huge, causing her to laugh. "Cal set it up... It changes like once a week... Come on."

The three of them walked into Zoe's armory, the walls were lined with all kinds of weapons, from simple stakes to plasma cannons. There were ceiling to floor steel cabinets in the middle of the huge room and a round conference table to the far right.

"Impressive." Rein breathed out as he looked around the room.

"Thank you. Caltan and Cal helped me do it... Now, Rein... You like crossbows..." She walked over to the wall where several different crossbows were lining the wall from top to bottom in two separate rows. "Pick any one you want."

"Zank you." Rein told her as he reached for one that reminded him of his own crusader's crossbow. The weight of it in his hands was perfect.

"I like that one too." She smiled then turned around, grabbing a short side quiver filled with stakes tipped in silver and handed it to Rein. "Aim for the heart."

Rein nodded as he took the quiver, slinging it around his neck. "I vill not fail you." he said, lifting the crossbow upright.

"I know you won't... Neither of you... Ready?"

They both nodded and the three of them walked out of the room, sealing it shut before moving through the rest of the house and entering the night.


	17. Chapter 17

"Blayze! Fire off this one! Land it in the middle!" Zoe hollered, tossing him a blue flare.

Blayze quickly loaded it and fired. The flare exploded in the sky and a sudden rainstorm started pouring down. He looked on in confusion and slumped his shoulders in disappointment.

Painful screams filled the air as the rain fell down upon the herd of vampires, smoke rising from their bodies.

Once the rain flare had stopped she tossed Pyro another flare. "You'll like this one better."

He quickly loaded it, taking his aim and firing again. He smiled when he saw what Zoe calls the Rings of Hellfire in action. The skyward flame at the end made him almost giddy with delight.

Rein's eyes grew wide when he saw the Rings in effect. "Mein Gott. Zat vas..."

"Rein, heads up!"

Rein shook the bewilderment from his mind then took aim before firing his crossbow.

"Excellent shot Rein!" Zoe hollered out from her spot, firing her own weapon.

"As vas yours!"

"Zoe!"

Before the young man could finish, the alarms from the west tower as well as the east tower started sounding off simultaneously.

"SHIT! Blayze, Rein... Don't get bit!" She hollered as she jumped down off the boulder and took off to the left.

The men looked at each other before taking off after her, their adrenaline pumping. Their eyes widened as they saw the vampires entering the town, attacking some of the brave souls that had been out there to protect their town. Pyro turned on his flamethrower as Medic reloaded the crossbow, both men running in to join the chaos.

Explosions mixed in with faint screams were heard from the north west side of town as the Coalition started stepping in on their General's command to take down all the vampires they spotted as well.

Rein spotted Zoe as she started swinging what looked like a prickly bat, then brought up the crossbow, firing right past her left shoulder, tagging one of the vampires that was about to attack her, killing it instantly. She paused only for a second in shock then resumed her swinging, not caring where she hit the creatures but somehow killing them all the same.

Blayze was setting vampires on fire, laughing at their screams and his triumph over the blood sucking parasites. He heard Zoe call for him and rushed over to her, frying the creatures that were coming up from behind her then quickly dodged out of the way when she spun around with the bat.

"Blayze! Oh... I'm sorry... Here! Load this... When I give the signal, fire it straight up in the air... This is our last resort... There are far too many to try and..."

Blayze grabbed her and yanked her behind him, cutting her off and lighting up another vampire that was reaching out to grab her himself.

"Thanks... Here..." She said, holding out another flare. "Rein! Cover me, please!" She called out once the Pyromaniac took a hold of the flare, loading it into his gun.

Rein quickly made his way over to the two, leaning over Zoe as she tucked herself for cover, wrapping his arms protectively around her and ducking his own head. "Kill those sons of bitches!" She hollered once she felt as safe as possible.

Blayze fired the flare high up into the air and waited anxiously to see what this one would do. He didn't have to wait for long as the power and brightness of the sun itself brightened the entire sky, he himself had to close his eyes and quickly went down to help protect Zoe.

Screams were heard momentarily before silence ensued once again. The UV Sun Flare lasted around five minutes before finally dying out, sending the surrounding area back into darkness.

Cheers could be heard all around the town as the people celebrated their victory over the vampire swarms.

Rein lifted his head up slightly, making sure it was over before finally uncovering Zoe. "Are you alright?" He asked as Blayze followed his move and lifted up off of her as well.

Zoe lifted her head, smiling up at the two men. "Yes, thank you... Thank you both... Unfortunately, that particular flare would have killed me too. I've heard about it but never get to see it for myself." She sighed. Rein helped her to her feet then backed up a couple of steps to stretch his body. She smiled and turned to Blayze, who was taking off his mask and asked him, "What did you think of it?"

"That was... Amazing! It was so bright too... I'm glad this mask is tinted or I would have probably been blinded by it." he answered excitedly.

"Yeah... You would have been." She nodded then looked up at the tower. "Leo! What time is it?"

"Twelve minutes before dawn!"

"Alright guys... Job well done. Thank you for your help tonight... It was a lot worse than normal."

"You're velcome... So... Ve're done?"

"Yeah... The sun rises in about ten minutes and they know it... They can feel it... They're dumb but not totally stupid."

"I'm probably asking too much but... Can I have a couple of those fire flares?"

Zoe smiled at Blayze then acted as if she was seriously contemplating an answer. "On one condition..."

Blayze chewed on his bottom lip, anxiously awaiting the terms. "Okay... What do I have to do?"

"Give me a hug?"

Blayze looked at her for a moment in disbelief then smiled big before stepping closer and hugging her tight, getting the same in return.

Zoe finally broke the hug as she stepped away, smiling at the man before her. "Go get some rest and come to my house in the afternoon... I'll give ya'll a few treats from my armory. Unless ya'll want ta stay at my place... Up to you."

"I zink ve'll go back to ze 'Dune King'... Don't vant zem to vorry..."

Zoe nodded as she turned to walk away. "Goodnight and Sweetmare Dreams you two... I need to go talk to the General real quick before he retires for the... morning?"

"Vant us to come vith you?" Rein asked as he quickly started following her, Blayze close behind.

"You can if you want... I'm just wanting to thank him for his and his men's help tonight... Normally they don't have to step in unless things get overwhelming." She explained before stopping to look at the two men. "I'll be alright though... He won't hurt me... He's the only member of the Coalition that I would trust not to do so."

"Okay... Vell... If you need us... You know vhere ve are."

"Yes... Thank you." She said with a smile then hugged them both. "Goodnight."

"Guten Nacht." Rein returned then he and Blayze walked to the 'Dune King' as she proceeded quickly to the other side of town.

"General!" She hollered out as she approached the gates to the base.

"Nocturn... Looked like you were having too much fun out there... Thought you wouldn't mind if we joined you." The General stated with a grin.

She couldn't help but smile back before responding, "Yeah... It was a rather exciting party that brewed... Anyway... I wanted to thank you and your men for helping out tonight... We lost a few people but not near as many as what there could have been... I've never seen them attack like this though... Something seems different."

"I was thinking the same thing. I've already instructed my men that they will be on constant nighttime lookouts... Hopefully this was just a one time spawn attack but... Just to make sure."

"Yeah... I do appreciate it, General. And we'll keep on lookout as well... Thank you again." She said before reaching up to hug him, stunning the man entirely.

The General slowly, cautiously hugged her back before quickly letting go and straightening back up, clearing his throat. "Okay... Sleep well, Zoe..." He said as he turned to walk back through the gates.

"Sweet dreams, General." She said in return before making her way back to town and heading home.


	18. Chapter 18

After asking several of the townspeople where Zoe lived at, a small child is who finally told him. He stood in front of the stone building with no windows then raised his finger to press what he thought would be a doorbell.

Zoe yawned, looking over at the clock on the wall, noticing it was a little after three. "Must be Blayze..." she said to herself with a smile. She got up and got dressed quickly before walking to the living room. After unlocking the door, she stood back a few feet. "Come in!" she hollered out.

The door opened, letting just a little of the sunlight in before it quickly closed again, softly.

She was quite surprised to see that it wasn't Blayze at all but the Frenchman. "Bonjour, Michael."

"Bonjour, Madame. I do hope I am not disturbing you."

"Not at all... I actually slept a little longer than normal today... Guess I was tuckered out from all the excitement from last night."

"Zat is good... Zat you did get some rest, that is. I have come to offer my apologies for last night an' for not being at ze war."

"Why did you miss the paint ball war?"

"I... I disguised myself as Caltan to get information from Core... Everyzhing on you, Caltan an' ze rest of your bruzers and sisters... Ze good an' ze bad." He explained truthfully, lowering his head.

"The good and the... Why? Why would you trick Core to get info on us?" She asked suspiciously.

"I don't trust very easily... an' it's in my nature... I like to know everyzhing about ze people around me." He told her, glancing up to meet her eyes.

"I can agree with that actually..." She smiled. "I just may have to hire you myself, if you're that good to even trick Core."

Michael smiled briefly then bowed before her. "So, Madame... Am I graced wiz your forgiveness?"

"Hmm..." Zoe hummed, contemplating her answer. "You deceived my brother's computer. You stole information on my family. You lied to me... You were out after dark... Yet, you told me the truth as to why you lied in the first place and you helped me when I was injured... I have two questions... One, are you going to use said information to harm us?"

"Non."

"Two, are you going to keep said information and pass it off to others or burn it?"

"I do not have zem wiz me, do I? Zey are on ze table in ze APC along wiz files Cal printed up on us."

Zoe looked at him, confused then shook her head. "Leave it up to Cal... But that didn't actually answer my question... I know you don't trust us fully... I can feel that much but-"

"I may not trust you fully but zat is somezhing zat I hold wiz anyone an' everyone... I had gotten to know you an' your bruzer on personal levels an' even zhough I find you to be eccentric... I have seen what you put yourself zrough for zhis town an' for people zat you don't even know... Jus' as your bruzer had picked up five strangers an' helped zem... So, non... I would not sell out ze two of you."

"And the others?"

Michael smiled, nodding his head. "I had a feeling you were still going to bring zem up... Would it make you happy if I did burn zem?"

Zoe nodded. "If those files somehow fell into the wrong hands we'd be dead in no time."

"I see... Well, we don't want zat happening. I shall destroy zem if only to put your mind at ease, Madame." He assured her with a slight bow.

She smiled, giving her own nod of appreciation. "Merci beaucoup, Michael... And... You are forgiven."

"Merci, Madame." he said with a gentle smile then took her right hand into his own, lifting it to his lips, kissing the back of it before lowering it back down and letting go. "I will go an' take care of matters... I shall talk to you again, soon." Michael told her as he turned to leave.

"See you soon, Michael."

Michael opened the door only to jump back momentarily. "Mon Dieu... You startled me."

"Sorry Michael... Zoe here?"

"Oui." he nodded then stood to the side.

Blayze and Rein both walked in then seconds later Michael walked out.

"Hey! It's my two favorite boys!" Zoe said cheerfully as she stepped closer to give the two men each a hug.

A blush rose to Blayze's cheeks even before he received his hug from the woman. "I hope this isn't a bad time..."

"Absolutely not. You two can come by anytime you want." She told them with certainty. "I'm guessing though that you two are wanting the toys I promised ya."

"Zat is not ze only reason we came by..."

"But, it is one of the reasons." She pointed out, smiling. "Come on, we'll get that out of the way, then we can visit."

They followed her to the armory and went inside.

"First and foremost..." She said as she walked off, grabbing a chest harness off the wall before proceeding to one of the many large cabinets and opened it. As she started loading the flares into the harness, she explained each one. "The black and red striped ones are what I call the Rings of Hellfire... That's the one you liked most... The yellow ones are the UV flares... Please warn me first if you fire those and I'm anywhere around... Unless of course you're mad at me for some ungodly reason and just want me dead." She could feel the shock roll off both men but never turned to look at them as she proceeded. "The dark blue ones are the storm flares that you didn't like too much but they do come in handy at times. Now, this one you haven't seen in action yet..." She turned to finally face them, holding up a white flare. "This one can blow a crater into the ground or a large hole in the side of a building, whichever you hit. A plasma fire will engulf the edges and burn for... at least an hour. It's good for trapping and holding if you use it as the crater option... If it doesn't kill 'em during the explosion... Now, I'm putting three of each in the harness and I'll put... Probably about five extras of each in a bag for ya. If you ever need any more, let me know. Okay?"

Blayze nodded wide eyed as he stepped forward to take the harness that she was holding out to him. "Thank you."

"Think nothing of it." She smiled before turning to put the extras in a bag then handing that to him as well. "But you are very welcome."

"And... I would never kill you... or even want to..." Blayze informed her with the utmost sincerity.

Zoe smiled, placing the palm of her hand against his cheek. "I know... But things do happen, especially in this world..." She saw the look in his eyes sadden then shook her head. "I'm not saying that I don't believe you... I know your words are truthful. I'm just saying that if something were to happen and I did become a threat to you, your friends or even to others... Innocents, especially... I would not hold it against you and would actually want you to end me... Hopefully quickly since I don't do well with pain... That, you have already witnessed yourself." When she saw his nod of understanding she turned to close the cabinet and walked over to the wall, motioning for them to join her. "Flamethrowers, plasma cannons, flare guns... Anything and everything a pyromaniac could ever want is right here... Choose whatever and however much you want... Just pretend you're in a candy store and go wild." She smiled, looking at Blayze as she waved her hand at the vast wall before them then looked over at Rein. "You, come with me, Bitte."

Rein followed her, stopping in front of the wall that contained the crossbows he had seen the night before.

"I'm not sure what all you would want but if you see anything at all that spikes your interest, feel free. I know you like crossbows so... Whatever and however much... I mean it. I also have different arrows for them too." She walked to the closest large cabinet and opened it, Rein following right behind. "These have exploding tips. These can pierce through just about anything... The silver tipped ones you used last night... Good for vampires and werewolves. These are special. They are barrage arrows... When fired, each single arrow will turn into a barrage of force blasts that look like small comets... They are fast and even if you are going against something that tries to run or fly away, it will follow like a guided missile... Creates a lot and I mean a Lot of damage. And... The heart seekers... No matter where you hit them... They will find the heart even if they have to burrow up from the enemy's foot..." she explained showing him each one as she did so.

"Vhat is zhis vun?"

"The needles? Oh... Should have guessed you would like those bein' a medic and all..." She said, literally smacking her hand to her forehead. "These are filled with Holy water... Great for vampires... And these are filled with silver nitrate, very nasty buggers, poisons the victims."

"Und zhis vun? It's marked radioactive... Is it not?"

Zoe let out a nervous chuckle, shaking her head. "They are, what I consider, my last resort arrows. Those are live uranium. It negates all healing... They put off enough radiation that not even a god would be able to cure himself or herself of it... and eventually die. As much as I like you, I can't let you take those... I'm uncomfortable with them in my hands much less if they were in someone else's... Any others, I'm fine with... Those... I do hope you understand." She said, her eyes pleading with him to understand the dangers of such a device.

"I do... You have nuzzhing to vorry about."

She smiled as she pulled three quivers from the top shelf and handed them to him. "If you need more they are up there. Take what you want... Except for-"

"Ze live uranium. I know und Danke." he smiled as he stepped forward and started filling the quivers.

"You're welcome... If you wish to choose any of the other weapons I have, please do so... Like I said before... I'm not sure what all you would want or even feel comfortable using."

"Danke again, Fräulein."

She smiled as she walked over to the conference table and sat down, letting the two men rummage through the armory. She reached over turning on the sound system and started listening to Johann Sebastian Bach's, Toccata and Fugue. She turned it up slightly, closed her eyes and let the music consume her.

Once the music reached it's end, she opened her eyes, at the same time reaching over to play a different song and jumped slightly. "Uhh... Sorry... Was the music bothering you?" She asked, embarrassed that she hadn't realized he was there, too absorbed in the music.

"On ze contrary... I love ze classics. Bach, Beethoven, Mozart... If I had Mein violin, I could play zem for you." Rein started, a mixture of feelings rolling off of him.

"You play the violin?" She asked, receiving a nod for her answer. "I always wanted to learn it but... I know how to play the piano and clarinet."

"Really? Interesting." He smiled, taking a seat beside her.

"Yeah... Learned piano when I was about seven... Started playin' the clarinet when I was... Eleven, I believe. You know... I'll be right back! Stay right here." Zoe stood up and took off out of the armory, leaving Rein looking after her in confusion. A couple of minutes later she came back in, holding a case. She laid it down in front of Rein and smiled. "Can you play for me?" she asked, biting her bottom lip.

Rein opened the case slowly, his eyes widening as he gazed upon the shiny, sleek curvature of the wooden instrument before him. He carefully took out the violin and it's bow, running his fingers lightly over it. "I vould be delighted." He finally answered softly.

After tuning the violin, he fitted it into place then started playing a beautiful yet unfamiliar piece.

Zoe sat down, listening and watching him in awe. The music once more taking it's claim on her. The song was filled with a very wide range of emotional turns and before long, she had tears swimming in her eyes. Her heart longing for the story behind the beautiful song.

When the song was over, Rein lowered the instrument, his world now feeling complete once again.

"Who wrote that? I've never heard it before... It was absolutely beautiful..."

"Danke... I vrote zat vun years ago."

Her eyes widened as her mouth dropped in amazement. "Really? Oh my God... That was one of the most loveliest songs I have heard... So many emotions in one piece."

Rein smiled wider, lowering his head. "Danke again... I vrote it after ze var... I lost many friends during zat time und a son." He said as he looked over, just now noticing that Blayze had joined them, sitting just a couple of chairs down from him.

"Don't... You did what you did to keep me safe... Don't blame yourself for that." Blayze told him, getting up from his chair and moving to the one next to Rein. He wrapped his arms around his only father figure, squeezing him tight.

Rein returned the hug, holding onto it as long as he possibly could before turning his head to see a smiling yet slightly confused expression on Zoe's face which prompted him to tell her the story of him finding Blayze.

"After hearing that and the music you wrote afterwards... I think Blayze is right... You've beat yourself up over something that you felt would be the only way to save him for too long... You should be looking at this as a blessing. Fate has brought you both together again... Cherish that always." She said smiling at the two of them.

"I vill." He vowed with a smile of his own.

"Good... Now, will you play us another song on your newly acquired violin?"

Rein's smile could not grow any bigger than what it was at that very moment as he nodded, picking the violin back up then looking at her. "Danke, Fräulein."

VvVvVvVvV


	19. Chapter 19

"Hey Caltan?"

"Yeah?"

"I'd hate ta be a bother but... Where does your sister live? I made her a couple of things that she could use around here... Kinda felt a little useless last night."

Caltan lifted an eyebrow, looking over at the shorter man. "You know, Dell... She doesn't expect everyone who rolls in to risk their life by fighting."

"Yeah, I know but... It'd sure make me feel better if I was able to help somehow." Dell shrugged, sighing heavily.

Caltan nodded, understanding completely on what the other man was saying. "You can't miss it... It's the only building in town that has no windows, looks as if it's made from stone and has a concrete door. It's almost in the dead center of town."

"Gotcha... Thanks Boss."

Dell smiled as he left the 'Dune King' carrying two tool boxes, one under each arm. It took him a while to make it to her front door with how heavy his equipment was. He put down one and rang the doorbell. After a few minutes he saw the door open, Blayze's head poking out before he opened the door to let the other man enter.

"Thank ya kindly." Dell smiled, reaching down to pick up the other toolbox and walk inside.

"Somezhing vrong, Herr Dell?"

The shorter man turned to see Rein and Zoe sitting on separate ends of the couch and once Blayze shut the door he returned to his chair over on the other side of Zoe.

"Hi Dell!" She said with a smile then waved him over. "Come... Make yourself at home."

"Thank ya, ma'am." He nodded, putting down the toolboxes and claiming the only chair left.

Zoe looked at the toolboxes in confusion then back up at Dell. "Busy?"

"Well, yeah, kinda... I built ya a couple of things that might help ya..." Dell grinned as he stood back up and moved the toolboxes closer to her before opening the first.

She watch in amazement as a machine started constructing itself before her eyes. "Wow! What is it?" She asked as she got down off the couch and crawled the short distance to it. She lifted her hand, lightly running her fingers over the knobs, buttons, drawers and gauges.

"This here is a dispenser... It can replicate and produce different ammos for your weapons and thanks to Doc here, it puts off a healing aura like the one in his medigun, just not as strong."

"Really? That's cool! How do you get it to make certain ammo?"

Engie showed her the simple and basic process on how to load the weapons in for initial scans and how to start it on producing the ammo from it's memory bank.

"That is freakin' awesome! Thank you so much, Dell. This will definitely come in handy."

"Welcome ma'am but that's not all." Dell smiled big as he moved to the other toolbox and opened that one.

Zoe fell back onto her butt, catching herself on her elbows before letting the back of her head hit the floor as well.

"What the hell?" She asked, startled out of her mind as this large array of weapons constructed themselves not even a foot from her.

"Sorry, didn't mean ta scare ya... This here is what I call a sentry gun... Well with your enemies, I've made a few modifications to better help ya. If you look here..." He instructed, waiting until she was back on her knees and paying attention before he continued. "If you have the switch flipped to 'V', that's for your vampire wars... 'C' is for your Coalition paint ball wars and 'F' is if you need fire power on the front lines... Here's a joystick type remote so you can control the shots on that one... Might wanna practice that first before relying on it."

Zoe took the remote, looking it over before getting to her feet, smiling. "This is amazing, Dell! I can't wait to try it." She said then placed the remote down on the couch and turned back to the engineer. "I can't believe you did this for me... What do I owe you?" She asked, excitement bubbling through her.

"Nuthin' ma'am.. You don't owe me a thang... See, I wanted ta help ya'll last night but... kinda felt a little useless." He said softly, looking away.

"No... Don't ever think you're useless..." She told him as she wrapped her arms around his neck, hugging him tight. "Thank you so much..." She pulled away, smiling at the older man. "I have my own little armory if you wanna take a look around and see if there's anything you might like... Rein and Blayze already have."

"'Preciate it, Ma'am... But I don't want ya ta think I need payment or anything."

"No, no... It's my pleasure... Rein, you remember the code, right?"

"Ja... Storms, Shakespeare, Spooks."

"Exactly! Thank you, Rein." She smiled then lightly pushed Dell to get him moving towards Rein.

"Follow me, Dell." Rein called out as he exited the room.

Dell looked a little confused, scratching his balding head as he followed behind Rein, whispering, "Storms? Spooks?"


	20. Chapter 20

"Do ya'll really have to leave so soon?"

Blayze looked over at the rest of their team, seeing Rein nod his head. The fire starter lowered his eyes, his mood falling more on it's downward spiral.

"Ja... Ve are needing to get to Green's Burrow und soon." Rein answered, his own voice carrying a saddened tone.

"Oh..." Zoe went over hugging the two men then stepped back before adding. "Let's get you stocked up... Come with me, all of you."

The group of men followed Zoe to a large concrete building with no windows and a thick steel door. She unlocked it and pulled it open with it making a loud squealing creak then stepped inside to turn on the light. She poked her head out momentarily and waved the guys inside.

As the five men stepped inside one by one their eyes widened. There were rows and rows of shelving units that reached from ceiling to floor, each one labeled in alphabetical order and loaded up with said products.

"Knowing my brother, you'll probably want to grab some supplies to get the 'Dune King' stocked back up. Grab what you think you need or want. There are bags over on the wall to the left of ya." She told them, waving her hand towards the wall full of different sized bags. "There's a door near the back and to the right... It's refrigerated items such as food, butter, medicines... Stuff like that."

Each man grabbed a bag and started going through the shelves hollering back and forth to each other on items they might need or not while Zoe walked over to a table on the right side of the door and sat down on top of it, her heart feeling heavy and saddened. She loved when her brother came into town but hated when he had to leave and worse this time since she actually took a strong liking to a few of the guys that had rode in with him. She sighed heavily as she thought about the last few days. She had had such fun; paintball war, scaring Michael and Eugene, befriending Blayze and Rein, the two men helping her defeat the vampires just a couple of nights ago and finally getting to know Dell as well. The last few days had been chalked full with excitement, happiness and adventure and she was not near ready to let that go but what choice did she have?

Rein walked over towards Zoe, feeling as if something were wrong. Her eyes were staring straight ahead but she seemed to be unaware of anything going on including his approach. They seemed lost, empty then he felt it. At first it was a ticklish feeling which made him want to giggle then it changed to one of sorrow and longing. She was broadcasting her feelings without realization of such and strongly at that.

"Zoe?" he said as softly as possible, not wanting to startle her but finding out soon enough that she hadn't even heard him. "Zoe?" he tried again, reaching out to touch her hand.

As soon as his fingers lightly touched her skin she jerked, almost causing him to fall backwards. "Oh... I'm sorry... You okay?" She asked, reaching out absently to grab his hand to help steady him.

"Ja... Ja... I actually came over to ask you ze same zhing."

"What? Oh... yeah... Yeah, I'm fine... Was just caught up in memories is all... Did ya need somethin'?" She asked, shaking her head to get her mind back on track.

"I don't but... I zink you do... Vhat is vrong?" Rein asked, hopping up on the table beside her.

She sighed then turned her body so she could look at him more easily. "It's nothin' really... I just... get attached to people... Ya know? Havin' Caltan and Cal back in town and you and the others... I just wish ya'll could stay around longer. I like having you all here... Makes me feel more... alive, in a sense..."

Rein looked at her, still feeling the heaviness that was flowing off of her. "I vish ve could stay longer as vell but... Right now, time is of ze essence." He tried to explain without going into detail.

"Yeah... I figured as much..." She sighed again then smiled. "Go... Get supplies... I'll be okay."

Lifting an eyebrow at the younger woman's words, Rein shook his head. "You are not a good liar..." He then got off the table and turned to face her. "Especially since you're projecting a feeling zat's far from being okay... But... I vill leave you be... for now. If... by chance, you do vant to talk... You know vhere I am." He walked off shortly after that to resume where he had left off, leaving her to her thoughts.

Zoe chewed on her lower lip, knowing the Medic was correct in what he had said. She watched the five men for a bit longer then hopped off the table and walked out of the building. Once outside she ran to her house and hurried inside, hoping to make it back before they left out of town.

Within two hours, bags upon bags of food and supplies were loaded into the 'Dune King' and put up to where they belonged.

Zoe ran inside, much slower than normal as she was now loaded down with a few backpacks and other random items. "Boys!" she hollered out upon entering.

The five team members plus Caltan walked into the hallway, many cocking eyebrows as they looked at her. "What the hell, Sis?"

She smiled as she unloaded her arms and back, setting everything on the floor before looking back up. "Well... I started thinking..."

"You know that's dangerous..." Caltan joked, grinning at her.

"Yeah, I know... Anyway... Eugene..." She motioned for the younger man to come closer which he quickly did so, kneeling down in front of where she was also on the floor. "You never came by my house... I know I creep you out and all... Sorry..."

"What? No!" He hollered then quickly ducked his head, lowering his voice. "No... It wasn't that at all."

"Eugene... Shh... It's okay... No big deal... I told ya before, I'm used to it... Anyway, from what I've gathered from you, you like baseball and really good at running... So..." She reached into one of the bags and carefully pulled out a bat with spikes sticking out from around the top and going down about four inches. "Be very careful with this..." She said, handing it to him. "It's enchanted... No matter where you hit your enemy the strike will go straight to their heart. Instant kill... The spikes are infused with silver so they'll work on vampires, were animals and so much more."

Eugene's eyes were huge, listening to the description. "Holy Shit! No Freakin' Way! That is like... Awesome!" He went to lunge at her, arms flying open.

Zoe fell back, eyes wide as she saw Scout come at her, bat in hand.

He quickly stopped himself when he saw her sling herself away from him and looked confused until he looked up to his right hand. He quickly lowered the bat to the floor then held his hand out to her, a nervous chuckle escaping his lips. "Heh... Sorry... I... I wasn't gonna hit ya... Promise! I..." He lowered his head, looking at his hands. "I was gonna hug ya..."

Zoe calmed her beating heart before getting back onto her knees. "Eugene, dear... Not to upset you or anything but... When someone hands you an instant kill weapon... Don't jump at them with it in your hands... Okay?"

"Yeah... Okay... Sorry..."

She smiled then leaned forward, hugging him which was quickly returned by the younger man.

"Thank you!" He said excitedly when he pulled back.

"You're welcome, Hon."

Eugene stood up with his bat in hand and walked back to the group, showing it off proudly.

"Michael..."

The Frenchman came forward after taking his eyes off his son's new bat and as Eugene had done, he too lowered himself to his knees before her. "Madame..."

She smiled as she reached for one of the backpacks. "This is for you... Should be the right size."

Michael took the bag, nodding his head once. "Merci beaucoup, Madame."

"You're welcome."

Michael stood up and moved to the stairs where he sat down and pulled out a complete five piece black suit with a white button up shirt, black vest with white pinstripes and a black, sleek tie. He smiled looking at the suit then noticed something else in the bag. He reached in pulling out a black beret, his smile widening.

Zoe stood up, walking over to the stairs. "You seem like the type who's more comfortable bein' all decked out... Just to let ya know though... It's armored... Hat too... So, not only is it stylish but useful as well."

The Spy looked over at the younger lady appreciatively. "Merci, again..."

She smiled, nodding then walked back over to where the rest of the stuff still sat.

"Blayze, darlin'.. Caltan has the best fireproof suits and I've already loaded you down with some kick ass weapons.. you and Dell both on that so.. I made ya'll some cookies... A lot of cookies..." She smiled holding another backpack out for the fire starter.

After Blayze took the bag and backed up, she turned her sights on Rein. "I know... I've already loaded you down with weapons too but... I remembered something I had... Something I think will look..." She opened the last backpack, cutting herself off briefly then stood up as she pulled out a long, black trench coat. "... great on you... And like Michael's... It's armored as well."

Rein stepped closer, taking a hold of the trench coat and looking it over before slipping it on for size. "It's perfect." He said softly, spinning around for her as she motioned for him to.

"It is perfect." She agreed as she reached towards him, taking a hold of the jacket, closing it and tying it off. "Damn... I'm good." Zoe smiled then stepped back.

"Vielen Dank, Fräulein." He said with a bow.

"You're very welcome." She smiled then looked to the rest of the group. "It was great to meet you all and I do hope to see all of you again sometime..." She felt her heart clench and the tear trying to well in her eyes. She shook her head and forced herself to smile. "Caltan... You and Cal better take care of these boys or I'll have to hurt you both.

Caltan grinned, nodding his head. "I will try."

Zoe lifted an eyebrow, placing her hands on her hips. She reached into her pocket, pulling out what looked like a hand grenade. She pulled the pin and threw it to Caltan.

The five men hit the floor, wide eyed. A manic laugh filled the hall then they heard Cal's voice ring through. "No... It's three seconds then throw. Not one, not five, three..." Then tossed the grenade back to her.

Zoe laughed as she caught the grenade, slipped the pin back into the dud and placed it back into her pocket. "I didn't like Caltan's response so I will tell you. You and Caltan take care of my boys or I'll hunt you down.. Got it?"

"Yeah, yeah... We'll take care of 'em..."

"Good."

"So, where are they?" He asked, looking around.

"Where are who?" She asked confused, tilting her head to the side.

"Your boys... Didn't know you had kids... Didn't know you could have kids... When did that happen?"

Zoe stepped closer to the group, motioning for them to rise up off the floor. "My boys..."

"Wow! Umm... I thought..."

"Cal!"

"Okay, okay... Just messin' with ya... Damn, Sis..."

The guys laughed as Cal threw up his hands in mock surrender then one by one each gave her a hug.

"My boys..." She said, smiling over at Cal.

VvVvVvVvVvVvVv

"Man... I feel kinda bad... you know... for leavin' and all." Eugene said as he sat down at the rec room table.

Blayze looked over at Scout in confusion. "Why do you feel bad? You didn't even spend any time with her... You-"

"Blayze..."

Blayze turned to look at who interrupted him then quickly softened his expression and voice that had started rising in irritation. "Sorry."

"Zat is fine, sohn. Und maybe he does feel bad because he didn't get to know her like ve did."

"Yeah! Like Doc said... An' ya know, she seemed so sad to see us leave." Eugene pointed out, looking around at the others.

"Because she vas... Even zhough she has an entire town to protect... She still feels alone... She misses her family, or at least some of zem." Rein explained, sitting down next to Blayze and across from Eugene.

"She told you zat?" Michael asked, taking his seat next to Eugene.

"Nein.. Not exactly... I... I jus' know." He said, shrugging his shoulders.

"You jus know, Doc? How in San Hill can you 'jus' know' somethin' that detailed?" Dell asked, sitting down between Rein and Michael.

"I... can't explain it... I jus' know."

"Telepath!" Cal coughed out as he walked by, heading to the mini fridge.

"What?" Eugene asked, looking over at Cal.

"Nuzzing." Rein answered instead. He got up from the table and headed upstairs, not saying another word to the others.

Cal shrugged after closing the fridge and proceeded back to the cockpit.

As Rein entered his destination he called out, "Core..."

"Good Evening, Doctor Gottmund. How can I assist you?"

"I need your help viz somezhing... How can I stregzhin' telepazy?"

"Come closer, Doctor... I will help you the best way I can."

Medic did as was instructed and soon found several videos starting at once.

After six hours, Rein walked out, his head was throbbing as he headed upstairs to the barracks to finally try and get some rest.

VvVvVvVvVvVvVv


	21. Chapter 21

"Mmm... Somethin' smells good..." Cal said as he entered the dining hall.

"Blayze tried a new recipe... If it tastes as good as it smells then we're in for a great treat." Dell smiled, anxiously awaiting the food.

"Yeah! Like, I'm drooling over here!"

Michael shook his head at his son's manners, sighing loudly. "Eugene, sit down."

The younger man huffed, flopping down next to his dad. "But-"

"Enough."

Cal lifted an eyebrow then walked into the kitchen area where Pyro was busy going from one pot to another. The fire starter opened the oven, pulling out the most mouth watering baked chicken Cal had ever seen. "Where did you get the spices?"

Blayze smiled, setting the chicken down on the counter. "Your sister... She told me some of the ones you liked most... Like ghost pepper, garlic... So..."

"Wait! You used ghost pepper on that chicken?" Cal asked, eyes wide.

"Well... Yeah... Something wrong with that?"

Cal couldn't help the grin that formed on his lips, trying not to laugh out loud. "No, no... Nothing wrong with it at all... Ohh... This is gonna be fun... I can't wait." He said as he walked out to take his seat, joining the others.

Rein walked in, looking at the others then shook his head as he walked into the kitchen. "Don't vorry, mein sohn... I vill help you." The older man told him as he started picking up dishes to take to the table. Once all the food was set out Rein and Blayze both took their seats as well.

"Somezhing's not right..." Rein whispered to himself as he looked around the table. He looked into the eyes of each person until he rested on Cal. He was hiding something... But what? He tried hard to concentrate but kept hitting an unforgiving wall. He followed Cal's eyes, watching everyone take their share of the chicken. Then he saw the grin. Rein looked over at Blayze who was lifting a fork full of said chicken to his mouth. Rein reached over, putting his hand on Blayze's, lightly pushing it down and away from his lips. "Wait..." he whispered.

Confusion crossed Blayze's brow but took his father figure's advice and waited.

"Oh my God! This chicken is so good!" Eugene praised between bites. "It's the be..." The three men watched Eugene's eyes grow huge, his mouth falling open. "AHH! AHH! OW! SHIT!" he screamed, grabbing his drink. He took several gulps but that did not put out the fire that was now inside his mouth, instead it made it worse. The younger man's face was turning bright red, sweat forming on his forehead. "What The Hell?!"

Cal couldn't hold back any longer as his manic laughter rang out. This continued for several minutes then just as quickly, calmed himself down. He stabbed his chicken, taking a huge bite. "Mmmm... Excellent job, Blayze! Definitely need to get the recipe." He said, giving Blayze a thumbs up.

Five pairs of eyes looked over at Cal then back down at the chicken. Dell, being the Texan he is, grinned and accepted the challenge. He took a hold of his chicken leg and took a bite. After a few seconds he smiled, breathing out, what he thought should be smoke. "OooWee! Now that's some kickin' chicken... Careful guys, this yard bird bites back."

"No shit, hard hat! How do you get it to stop biting?"

"Eat your 'taters, boy." Dell said, pointing at the mashed potatoes on Scout's plate.

"Eat my... I don't wanna eat nuttin'... I want the damn fire to stop!"

Dell raised an eyebrow, looking at Eugene before taking yet another bite.

Rein, who was watching Dell turned to face Eugene. "Eat your potatoes."

"Fine... Fine..." Eugene took a big bite of his mashed potatoes that was loaded with butter. After swallowing, he smiled. "Hey! It's working! Doesn't burn as much... Still burns like hell but not as bad as it was."

Dell grinned as he continued to eat while the others tested the waters with their potatoes close at hand.

Michael took only one bite, claiming the spice was too much for him to handle, while Blayze was the polar opposite, loving the burn.

Rein did eat most of his chicken, sweat beading down along his temples but finally claimed he was full.

Once everyone was done eating, the dining room was cleared away of it's dishes where they were washed and put away quickly.

Cal had stayed around, walking about until he saw Rein. "Good job, Doc... Getting stronger.. So, who's teachin' ya?"

"Core."

"Core? She can do that? Huh... Never thought about it... Clever. Keep it up, Doc. Walls are stronger but still bustable..." Cal pointed out with a smile then walked off.

Rein smiled as he went upstairs, heading back to Core.

VvVvVvVvVvVv

"We have about two more days through the woods then we'll be in Green's Burrow."

"You really should have ze Engineer look at zhose turrets of yours. Zhen maybe you can get zhere faster..." Michael pointed out.

"I might just do that..." Caltan contemplated then hollered out. "Dell! Work on my turrets?!"

"Sure!"

"Thanks!"

"No Problem!"

"Okay... He'll do it... Good suggestion, Michael."

Michael relaxed the tension in his jaw, shaking his head. "Merci... I zink I need to find ze Medic... For some reason I jus' got a splitting headache." He noted sarcastically, walking off from the cockpit.

"What wrong with him?" Caltan asked to no one in particular then shrugged.

Michael made his way up to the barracks where he spotted Rein just waking up. "Everyzhing okay, Docteur?"

"Ja... Jus' had a late night is all..." He yawned, stretching his arms before standing up from the bed. "Vhat is vrong?"

"Well..." Michael started then Rein cut him off by waving his hands.

"Let me try somezhing first before you explain." He watched the Spy nod in acceptance then closed his eyes. "Ahh... I have jus' ze zhing..." Rein walked over to a bag that he kept at the head of his bed and pulled out a couple of pills then handed them to Michael. "Zhis should get rid of ze headache..."

Michael tilted his head, looking at the man before him in confusion. "How..."

"Remember Cal saying somezhing about telepazy?" As soon as Michael nodded, Rein continued, "I've been practicing." He explained with a proud smile.

"Ahh... Zat is kinda creepy, Docteur... But kinda interesting as well."

"Zat und I've been trying to vork on Caltan's problem as vell..."

"Anyzhing?"

"Nein... But I'm not giving up... Zhis is jus' a bump in ze road... Jus' hope it doesn't turn into un mountain." Rein sighed heavily.

"Rein... Don't let zhis go to your head but... If anyone can figure zhis out... I believe you can an' will." Michael smiled, patting the smiling man's shoulder then nodded his head once before leaving to find some water so he could take the medicine.

VvVvVvVvVvVv


	22. Chapter 22

"Welcome to Green's Burrow."

The five men followed Caltan down the ramp of the huge APC, looking around the bustling streets of the city they finally arrived in a little over a week after leaving Crusado Haven.

"If there's anything you need or want, just ask."

"Ve don't have any money zat your people vill accept zhough." Rein pointed out, looking around at all the shops and sidewalk stands.

"No, you don't and here you don't need money." Caltan vaguely explained.

"Trade?" Dell asked, noticing a couple of people walking up to one of the sidewalk stands, looking at certain items, picking them up then simply just saying thank you and walking off with items in hand.

"Well... Kinda... We help out each other per say. Everyone here uses their skills to help out the city in a whole. And since you all are here with me... you don't have to worry about a thing. Need a car? There's one, take it." Caltan said, pointing at a car on the side of the road. "Need a room? We have enough to go around. Hungry? Pick out a restaurant and enjoy. Need clothes? There are shops everywhere."

Five, very confused, sets of eyes were staring at Caltan in total disbelief.

"Vhat?"

"You mean like, everything is free? All the ice cream I can eat, type of free?" Eugene asked excitedly.

"Umm... Yeah... I guess you can think of it like that."

"Oh Yeah! Now that's my kind of town!" Eugene hollered as he took off, heading into the crowd.

"Eugene!" Michael screamed out then waved his hand, dismissing the idea of running after the boy.

"He'll be alright... Can't really get lost in this town." Caltan assured the Frenchman.

"So, vhat can ve do to help?" Rein asked, feeling a little apprehensive about the whole idea of getting something for nothing.

"Well, you guys don't really have to do anything at all... Like I said, you're with me... But, if you feel that you must... Hmm... There's always the kids... you could keep them entertained if anything but watch out for the wolfen pups.. They may look fuzzy and cute but they bite... Especially if you call them pups and try to cuddle them." Caltan explained, giving them fair warning.

"Duly noted." Michael said, looking at the mixed array of species walking about.

"Good, now if you will follow me, I'll give ya a quick tour."

Caltan led the four men around town, pointing out different shops, restaurants, parks, coffee shops and bakeries. The latter causing Rein's ears to perk.

"Bakeries? Do zey have Beinenstich, streuselkuchen or Käsekuchen? Zhose are my favorites." Rein said as he closed his eyes and licked his lips just at the long ago memory of the fine German pastries.

"Uhh... Actually, I think they do but if not, you can always teach them... They're always eager to learn new recipes"

Rein smiled then nodded. "I'll definitely have to check zat out und if not... I can teach zhem..."

Caltan resumed his initial tour again and stopped when they came to a park. "Looks like Scout found some new friends." He pointed out as he and the four men stood watching Eugene talking to a group of older kids.

Once the group broke apart they ran out to different parts of the field and waited for Eugene to step up to the plate. "Alright! Throw the ball over the plate!" He instructed to the teenager that was standing on a mound of dirt. "If I miss, it's your job to catch it and toss it back to him." He told the wolfen teen that was standing a little ways behind the plate, crouched down towards the ground.

"Got it."

The ball flew quickly towards the plate which was met with a resounding crack when the bat in Scout's hands met it, sending it high and long towards the outer field where all eyes were skyward, tracking the ball's flight.

Eugene took off running, rounding first, second, third and finally home just mere seconds before the catcher caught the ball and lowered his hands down to Scout.

"Safe!" Came the cry from the pale skinned teen that was acting as the umpire.

"Yes!" Eugene hollered out, raising a fist to the air. "And that's how it's done!"

The next teen walked up to the plate, bat in hand but lowered it long enough to pull his hair back and securing it behind his pointed ears. He lifted the bat back up, rolling his shoulders before nodding to the pitcher, letting him know he was ready.

"Looks like he taught them how to play baseball... Cool..." Caltan told the guys, impressed on how fast the teenagers had taken up with Eugene to the point of even taking instructions from him with no arguments. They looked as if they were actually enjoying themselves with such a simple game from history's past.

"They didn't know how to play baseball?" Blayze asked, slightly confused.

"Nope... Games have changed over the years... Unfortunately that was one that was lost, by it's original design anyway."

"Zat's my boy." Michael said proudly, smiling.

The small group left the park and continued until they reached a huge building and stopped. "This is my building." They heard Caltan say before entering.

"Are you a king or something?" Blayze inquired, his eyes wide as he looked around the front lobby.

"Something... You can pretty much say that this is my city... I protect the people here and my business is here... I designed this city in a circle for two reasons... Can't get lost and protection." Caltan explains, sighing heavily.

Rein gave him a knowing nod, understanding the sigh for what it meant. "Ve vill help... No vorries."

"Thanks..." Caltan gave him a quick grin then clapped his hands together. "Let's get some rooms for you all. Follow me." He said, exiting the building.


	23. Chapter 23

"I suppose I could see if ze local clinic or hospital needs any help... Don't really know vhat else I can offer." Rein sighed, strumming his fingers on the table top.

"What about those recipes? That would be helpin'." Dell pointed out as he sat at the head of the bed, back against the wall.

"Ja... I suppose."

"This town is great! I wish we could stay here forever!" Eugene exclaimed happily.

"Non... Not forever..."

"Yeah, yeah... I know, Dad... It's just... This place is awesome!"

The corner of Michael's lips quirked upwards momentarily.

"I can help with the kids... I love kids." Blayze mentioned with a smile.

Rein smiled as he pictured their fire starter swarmed by little children, climbing all over him. "Jus' be careful viz ze volfen."

"I will."

"Spah... What are ya plannin' ta do ta help?" Dell asked, still trying to figure out himself what he could contribute.

"Zat... I do not know... We had to keep all ze weapons in ze 'Dune King'... I don't even have my watch... An' zhey don't have a use for a spy here..."

"Yeah... I know whatcha mean."

Michael looked over at Dell in confusion. "What are you talkin' about, Laborer? You have your machines, your intelligence... You're a hard working man yet you can't figure out what you can do to help?"

"Guess I can go around an see if people has things I can try fixin'..."

"See! Zhere ya go... Now you have a plan... Zhat jus' leaves me..." Michael sighed, slouching in the chair he was currently occupying.

"You'll figure somethin' out, Dad." Eugene told him with a reassuring smile.

Michael smiled in return, reaching down to ruffle Scout's hair who was sitting on the floor, leaning against the wall.

Eugene playfully swatted at his father's hand then ran his hands through his hair, trying to flatten it back down.

"Guess we better get headin' ta bed... I'm pretty bushed." Dell said with a yawn.

The other four men stood up, stretching after sitting for so long. They bid each other 'good night' before they all, except for Dell, left the apartment and went to their own, which were all close by.

Dell sighed as he closed and locked his apartment door and started getting ready for bed, wondering what the next day had in store for him and the rest of their team.

VvVvVvVvVv

"This is where you two can work on your machines and all... It's quiet and you won't have to worry about anyone buggin' ya." Caltan said, showing Rein and Dell the vast workshop within this building.

The two men looked about wide eyed before they both took on huge smiles nodding their approval.

"I zink ve can vork viz zhis..." Rein commented, looking over at Dell.

"Hell yeah! And now we know how to use most of these gizmos..." He turned towards Rein, his smile brightening even more. "Think of the possibilities..."

"Ja... I know. Danke, Herr Caltan."

"'Eh... You're welcome and if you need anything at all... Just ask." He told the two men with a shrug.

"You are alvays saying zhat... You und your sister... Anyvay... Vhile you're here... Ve can show you ze hows und draw you ze blueprints of ze machines... Zat is if you have ze time or vant to."

"Sure... I don't have any pursuing engagements at the time."

"Wunderbar!"

The three men stood around the work table discussing the different machines that they have all invented. Blueprints were now scattered about the surface as talk of improvements circled around the small group.

Rein and Dell both learned just as much about Caltan's designs and ideas as Caltan learned about their own within the several hours that they spent in that room. In mid discussion of Medic's vaccinator design a loud grumble was heard followed by another even louder one. Rein had stopped talking mid sentence, finger raised at the first initial sound, his cheeks turning slightly red. "Uhh... I apologize... I must be a little hungry."

Dell chuckled softly. "Yeah... I think maybe we should put this on hold and grab some grub..."

Caltan agreed with the other two men and stepped back from the table. "I know a great place to eat... We can leave these here for now. Nobody will mess with them. Come on."

Once the trio left the room, Caltan locked the door, just to make sure everything would be secured and led the other two men into the streets of town and proceeded to his favorite restaurant. It was a place called "The Kennel" which was ran by a Wolfen family.

As they entered, they heard someone holler out. "Caltan! Welcome back! Gotcha a seat right over here!"

Caltan threw the wolfen male, Will, a nod and motioned for the others to follow, taking their seats once they reached the table.

"Ahh... Fresh meat... Welcome to the Kennel. So, Caltan, the usual?" Will asked, tossing the other two men menus.

"Am I that predictable? Yeah, of course." Caltan smiled. "By the way, Rein, Dell this is Will. He owns the restaurant. Will, Rein and Dell, they are here to help me out some with a few projects." he said, introducing the men with him.

"Ahh... Gotcha..." Will nodded then turned to the other two guys. "Whatcha do?" He asked bluntly.

Dell looked towards Caltan then back to Will before answering. "Invent different types of machines, fix things... That sort a stuff."

"Fix things? Awesome! If you're not too busy sometime, I could really use your help with a few things in the kitchen... That is if you don't mind, of course." Will said, throwing a thumb back to point out the direction of the kitchen area.

"Be glad ta help." Dell smiled.

"Excellent! So what about you?" He asked, looking at Rein.

Rein sat up straight, his chin high with pride. "I invent healing machines und I'm a doctor."

Will nodded his head, impressed before commenting. "That'll be useful... Especially right now." He looked back to Caltan before continuing. "Seems we got a flu bug or somethin' around town right now. Both of my boys have it."

Caltan looked to Medic only letting his thoughts flow freely. **You said you didn't feel right with the whole free thing... Here's your chance... Wanna help?**

Rein nodded before speaking up, "I can take a look at zem if you vish..."

Will looked over at Rein, with what was presumed a smile, saying happily, "That would be great, Doc." Then looked once again at Caltan. "You should definitely keep these two around... I like them already... Better than most of the ones you tend to bring into town." He chuckled.

A chuckle escaped Caltan's lips as well, shaking his head. "Yeah... I know... I know..."

"So, whatcha boys havin'?"

"Ze steak sounds wunderbar... Zat und I guess a salad? Oh und... Sweet tea, bitte?"

"Sounds good to me... Same here, please." Dell smiled, nodding his agreement.

"How do ya want them cooked? Dead, double dead or still mooing?"

"Still mooing." Both men answered in unison.

That wolfen smile appeared once again before looking back at Caltan one last time. "Yep, definitely like these guys." He snickered before walking off.

The two men looked around, observing the other customers before Dell's thoughts started to wonder. **What the hell?**

Rein turned his head to look towards where Dell was looking then threw his thoughts towards Caltan, not wanting to offend anybody by asking questions aloud. **Spider men?**

Caltan grinned, looking over at Rein. **Spinne... A very intelligent spider species.**

**Und zhem? Zey look like demons.**

**Dnerr Devilmen.**

**Ahh... Hmm... Little Wolfen?**

**Actually, those are mutant dogs even though they can look very similar, they're not.**

**Is zat an elf?**

**Yep.**

**Zey are bigger zan I zhought zhey vould be.**

Caltan just nodded then noticed that Rein's inner thoughts got softer in his mind. He turned to look between the two other men, noticing Dell nod his head with everything that Rein was explaining to him about the species he had just inquired about. Once Rein was done he turned back to look at the healer. **Somebody has been practicing.**

Medic grinned, nodding his head. **Core's been helping me.**

**Core? Really?**

**Ja... Cal couldn't believe it eizzer. Ze first initial practice vas opening up to actually listen to ze ozzers... Not prying... Vhen ve vere in random conversations. Zhen doing individual, blocking out ozzers around. It vas a little difficult at first... but... I zhink I've got ze hang of it.** Rein thought proudly.

Just then a female wolfen walked up to the table, setting down three glasses. "Sorry it took so long, Caltan. It's pretty busy today."

"'Eh, that's alright Jazzy. I can tell... Oh, hey... I want to introduce you to Rein and Dell here.. Rein's agreed to take a look at your boys for ya... He's a doctor and Dell's gonna see if he can fix some things that Will said were broke in the kitchen." Caltan announced, waving his hand to each man as he was talking.

"Nice ta meet ya ma'am." Dell nodded his head in greeting.

"Oh!" She cried out before startling the two men as she quickly hugged them both. "Thank you so much! Both of you! You were definitely sent by the Gods themselves." She smiled, finally releasing them from her grip. "If you ever need anything, anything at all, just ask."

"Danke, Jazzy... Same goes for you as vell." Rein smiled back after collecting himself.

"I'm gonna go check to see if your food's done. Be back shortly angels." She said, leaving quickly.

Rein looked over at Caltan with a lifted eyebrow. **Sent by ze Gotter? Angels? Is she spiritual?**

**A little.**

**Und ze 'need anyzhing' deal must be somezhing you und your family started.** He pointed out with a chuckle.

Caltan smiled then shrugged. **That's better than what it could be... Agree?**

**Oh ja... definitely.**

A few moments later, Jazzy reappeared at the table, setting down the plates. "The salads must be for you two.. Caltan doesn't care for leafy things. Hope you enjoy it!" She said happily then took off again.

The three men ate in relative silence, only the moans of delight they made from the effects of their delicious food could be heard.

"Zat vas delicious!" Rein happily stated as he set down his silverware, exhaling heavily due to his over full stomach.

Dell leaned back, placing his hands on his stomach and rubbing to rid the ache of over indulging himself away. "Dang right... We'll hafta definitely come back here."

"Glad to hear that." Will said with a toothy smile as he walked up to the table. "Hopin' you come back soon."

"Definitely... Still gotta check out the kitchen stuff for ya."

Will nodded once towards Dell. "Wanna thank you in advance for that... It'll help out a lot around here if we get even half of it fixed."

"No problem... I can come by in the morning if ya like."

"Sounds great. I'll see ya then."

"Und if you give me about ten minutes... Maybe a little longer..." Rein chuckled, rubbing his own belly. "I can go get mein equipment und see to ze boys."

"Excellent! Just come back in here and I'll show ya upstairs... That's where we live." The wolfen explained, the evident smile widening.

Rein turned towards Caltan. "You don't mind, do you? Ve can continue our discussions tomorrow if you'd like."

"Don't mind a bit... I gotta few things to do and then I'm probably gonna hit the sack..." Caltan stood up, stretching a bit then smiled towards Will. "Thanks for dinner. Excellent as always."

"Welcome Caltan, anytime. Oh and thanks."

Caltan tilted his head, confusion crossing his brow. "For?"

"Well one, bringin' these two into town. Two, we got that shipment in last week. We had to store some of it upstairs, there was so much."

"No problem... Was in an area that had plenty of game an' more cows they knew what to do with. I'll see you guys later." He said with a wave as he started walking off.

The two men bid their new wolfen acquaintance with their 'see you soons' and walked out only moments after Caltan left.

Rein hurried as fast as his full belly would allow, to his room to retrieve his medigun and a bag of medical supplies he had packed in Crusado Haven and a few things from one of the first aid kits from the 'Dune King'. After gathering what he needed, he walked back to the restaurant. Several heads turned his way as he entered, some confused, some almost aggressive. After hearing a few of their thoughts, he understood why "Do not vorry... Zhis is not a veapon... I am a doctor." he announced so everyone could hear him.

Most of the aggressive looks seemed to calm as most of whom were looking, went back to eating.

Suddenly Jazzy was standing before Rein, causing him to startle slightly. "Sorry... I'll show you to the boys... Will's a little busy at the moment but said he'll be up when we get caught up." She explained as she led the Medic through the kitchen door and towards a staircase. Once they reached the top, she opened the door and led him to the boys' room and inside. "Jacob.. Jared.. This is Doctor Rein... He's gonna see if he can get you feelin' better so behave yourselves and don't you dare bite him." She warned them before turning back to Rein. "They should behave. If you need anything, I'll be right downstairs."

Rein nodded then bowed slightly as she walked past, leaving the room. He turned his attention back to the boys, giving them a quick look over before opening the bag. He took out a stethoscope, tongue depressors, an auriscope and a thermometer. He walked up to the first young wolfen, Jacob, and reached up, placing the back of his hand to the child's forehead. He wasn't real sure how their body temperature ran but to him, this young pup was burning up. He checked his throat and ears before putting on the stethoscope, instructing Jacob to breath in, breath out while listening to the rattle in his lungs.

Walking back over to his bag. He took out a notebook, jotting down a few notes then proceeded over to Jared. He started performing the same drill with the older pup, having to pull his hand back quickly when he went to check his mouth with the other tongue depressor. "Vhat did your muzzer tell you? No biting... I'm trying to help you." He scolded lightly but still keeping a firm expression.

Jared whimpered, lowering his head.

"It's okay... I know you're scared und you don't feel vell... und I know I'm a stranger but I need to do zhis... Okay?"

Jared nodded before lifting his head back up and opening his mouth.

Rein smiled as he continued his examination then walked back over to his bag, pulling out a small bottle of pills. "Boz of you need to take two of zhese..." He said, handing them each two pills and their water bowls that they had on their nightstands. He watched, making sure they both swallowed the medicine then reached back, turning on the medipack. "Zhis vill help heal your zhroat und lungs... Ze medicine vill help get rid of ze virus... Zis vill not hurt... I promise." He assured them as he pulled the lever back, letting the blue beam settle on each one separately. After shutting it off he walked back up to each pup, checking their throats, ears and lungs again. He was extremely happy with the results thus far. "I vill be back tomorrow to check on you two und I vill give your muzzer some medicine... Make sure you take it." He told them as he started heading towards the door after collecting his equipment.

"Thanks, Doc... Feelin' better already!" Jared grinned toothily, Jacob nodding along with his older brother's comment.

"You're velcome." Rein said with a smile before exiting out of the room.

Medic walked down the stairwell and back into the kitchen where he noticed both Will and Jazzy by one of the counters. He walked up to them with the utmost confidence and a smile on his face.

"Well Doc?" Will asked softly.

"Ze boys should be fine." He took out the pills and another vial and putting a few within the vial before capping it off and handing it to Jazzy. "Zhey need to take vun tomorrow evening und vun each day after until all ze pills are gone... Zhose vill help fight ze virus... I vill be by tomorrow about zis time to check up on zhem."

"Oh thank you! Thank you so much Rein." She said happily as she took the vial and hugged the man before her. She then stepped back to look at her husband. "See... Told you he was an angel."

"Yes dear... You did." Will smiled then looked at Rein. "Thank you... Come by early so you can eat before going to see them." He offered, reaching out to shake the Medic's hand.

Rein shook Will's paw and nodded. "Zat I vill gladly do. Danke." He replied before bidding them goodbye. He left the restaurant and walked down the street towards his apartment. He could not wait to get some much needed rest after the full day he had with not only Caltan and Dell but with the wolfen children as well. He smiled to himself though as he entered his living quarters. He felt good being able to help others again. It was a feeling he wished to hold onto for as long as he could.

VvVvVvVvVvVv

"Dell! Glad you could make it." Will immediately greeted the man before him as he opened the door to reveal the engineer.

"Mornin' Will... Hope it's not too early."

"Not at all... We were just havin' breakfast. Wanna join? We have plenty to go around."

"'Preciate the offer but I jus' had breakfas'... I can sit down an' wait for ya though... Eat." Dell said with a smile as he walked over to one of the empty tables and sat down.

Will shrugged, returning to his family and ate.

Moments later, both boys were up, running towards the door when Jazzy's voice rang out. "Uh uh... No!"

The boys stopped, turning to look at their mother. "But ma... We're fine." Jared said, the pout evident in his eyes.

"Until Doctor Rein says you're all better then no... Now, upstairs... Both of you and if you're feeling so much better then you can clean your room."

Jared went to open his muzzle to say something else but was quickly cut off by the look in his father's eyes. "Yes ma'am." he said instead before taking Jacob's paw and running off upstairs.

"Glad to see they're feelin' better."

"Yeah... They've been bouncin' around since the Doc left last night... I'm about tempted to put 'em on leashes." Will laughed then motioned for Dell to follow him into the kitchen.

Upon entering, Will led him to the grill. "This is my main problem..." He went to turn the dial up but the flame remained at the same level it had started out at.

"Well heck... That'll be easy." Dell assured him then proceeded to follow the wolfen around the kitchen, making mental notes as he went. "No Prob, Boss... Give me two hours tops and you'll be flyin' right once again."

"Sounds good... I'll leave ya be. Holler if ya need anything." Will said as he made his way upstairs.

Within an hours time, almost everything that had been pointed out was now fixed and working with no problems in the foreseeable future. The last machine left had Dell scratching his head. He had never seen anything like this before and was unsure on how it truly worked which in turn caused him to have an even rougher time fixing it.

Will came down to start getting ready for the lunch rush and saw a very frustrated Engineer. "Everything alright, Dell?"

Dell grumbled under his breath as he got to his feet. "I can't seem to figure out this cotton pickin' thang... I'm sorry but... 'till I can study a workin' one..."

"Hell... It's alright... That was just an extra little thing we ended up with for ones with a more... unique... taste for things." Will explained shrugging as he walked over to the grill, turning the dial up and watching with excitement as the fire rose to life. "Dell... You're a life saver just like your doctor friend... So, you like your steak still mooing, correct?"

Dell smiled from the compliment then nodded. "Hell yeah an' thanks Will."

"No thanks needed on your end. It should be me thanking you. Now, go take a seat and I'll have this done in no time." Will said, shooing the engineer out the kitchen door.

Dell went and sat down, relaxing a bit before Will appeared, carrying a plate, silverware and a large glass of sweet tea.

"If ya need anything, just holler... Enjoy."

Dell nodded his appreciation and started digging into his meal.


	24. Chapter 24

"Playin' baseball again?"

"Yeah... Why not? I'm makin' some cool friends and we all love baseball! What can be better than that?" Eugene exclaimed, hopping around excitedly.

"Alright... Go have your fun... Jus'... Be careful, son."

Eugene smiled as he walked over, giving Spy a hug. "I will... The wolfens really aren't all that bad... The spinne are creepy as hell but they're alright too... Don't care much for the elves... They can be pretty snobbish... Somethin' about their folks havin' some kind of fancy restaurant or somethin'... Oh Shit! Gotta go Dad! See ya later!" He hollered as he bolted out the door, letting it slam behind him.

Michael sat there for a moment, thinking about his son's last comment. Fancy restaurant ran by elves. Hell, why not? There was nothing else he could do around this town. Rein's off healing people, like normal. Dell's off fixing things, like normal. Eugene's playing baseball, somewhat normal and Blayze... Well, he's the only one not doing something that's remotely close to his normal which was a very good thing. At least that was a good thing in Michael's eyes.

Standing up, he checked himself in the mirror then proceeded to leave his apartment and walked outside. Michael continued down the sidewalk, scanning the different places until he came to one that looked like it should belong to some wingless faeries.

Upon entering, he looked at the décor a little more closely, actually finding it pleasing to his eyes.

"Boa tarde, senor."

"Bonjour."

The person before him was the same height and lanky build as he was. The ears were pointed and his black hair was long and straight, reaching just past the small of his back but also had it pulled back and secured with what looked like thick silver rings from his neck down to the end of his hair. His eyes literally sparkled like a midday sun hitting the beautiful blue waters of a serene lake.

"Table for..." The elf looked around and past Spy before finishing snobbishly. "one?"

"Oui..."

"I am Sven... Your waiter and owner of this bar." He introduced himself as he walked past several empty tables. He finally stopped once he reached the table at the far wall. "Your table."

Michael looked around at all the empty tables they had passed then looked back at Sven. "Any particular reason why you're seating me in a dark corner?"

"I assumed you wouldn't want to be seen by others." Sven told him point blankly.

"An' why is zat? Pray tell."

"Well, one, your ears... Oh, wait... You must be a half breed." The elf spat out. Even the thought of a half breed elf put a sour taste in Sven's mouth. "That would explain your lackluster hair as well and your coloration is just sad... So unhealthy..."

"I amnot an elf nor a half breed anything... I am a human." Michael growled out, getting more offended by the minute.

"Oh... That definitely explains it then..."

Michael glared at Sven, deciding to bite his tongue for the moment and put the man to the test. He sat down steepling his fingers before him. "I will take your finest wine an' whatever ze cook zinks is an acceptable meal in an establishment such as zis." He smirked, practically waving off the man.

Sven lifted his chin in defiance, spinning around gracefully and headed towards the kitchen.

Michael sat there, observing the handful of people that sat around, a majority of them were elves. Their demeanors were much like Sven's which did not impress the Spy by any means. "An' zhey say I'm a snob..." He said to himself, shaking his head in disgust.

"Enjoy... Human..." Sven all but spat out as he set a plate of food down then placed the wine down beside it.

Cocking an eyebrow at the lanky elf, Michael picked up the wine glass, tilting it slightly as he examined the contents. When satisfied he swirled it around, not spilling a drop, still inspecting it's consistency then lifted it to his nose, inhaling deeply before taking a sip, letting it roll and linger before finally letting it slid down his throat. Exhaling through his nose, he then brought the glass back up, taking a louder sip, letting it roll as well before swallowing then sat there for a moment basking in the aftertaste. "Hmm... Ze wine is definitely acceptable... Probably one of ze best I've tasted." He told Sven, who was still standing there.

Sven put on a cocky smile before replying, "Of course it is... It's elven wine but I'm actually shocked at the thought that a mere human as yourself can fully enjoy such a drink."

"Fine foods an' fine wines are my specialty... Don't underestimate a human's appreciation for such things." Michael pointed out before tasting his food, treating it much like the wine. After only the first small bite, he laid the fork down and grabbed a napkin, spitting the food into it. "As fine as ze wine is... Ze food lacks ze same... Is your cook trying to poison me wiz zis... Crap?!"

The face of the elf before him started turning several shades of red as his rage rose. "How dare you insult elven cuisine you insolent, insufferable human!" He growled, causing some of the other customers to stop and watch the two men. "Think you can do better?!"

Michael threw Sven a spiteful grin as he rose to stand. "Oui, I do zhink I can. Shall we put it to a test?"

"How do you manage to do that, human?"

Michael looked around once more. "Let your cook make somezhing an' I vill make somezhing an' ze customers will judge but... Zhey are not to know which one is which... Deal?" He asked, holding his hand out to the other.

"Deal!" Sven said, lifting his hand to seal the agreement.

Once inside the kitchen and after Sven calmed down his chef enough for him to listen, he explained the challenge. After a few choice words, the chef finally accepted.

Different flavors that customer preferred were discussed and each one was to make two of each type of dish to be served.

Michael didn't take long to scan around the place, familiarizing himself where everything was located then began.

Within an hours time, several dishes were ready, placed in the areas marked for the certain types that were to be made.

Sven reentered the kitchen, pleased by the abundance of food already prepared then started serving the dishes, having already explained to his customers that they were having a competition between chefs but refrained to say that one was a mere human.

Michael and the elven chef, who Michael found out was named Epsin, stood at the kitchen door peeking out the small window to watch the results. A smile crept up on Michael's lips as he watched the different plays of expressions the stood back as Sven made his way back to the kitchen with his written down votes and comments.

Sven stepped inside, first looking towards his own chef then to Michael. "I served twelve different individuals... Eleven out of twelve enjoyed... Yours..." He said, still looking at Michael. He exhaled loudly then continued. "Comments were... More flavorful... Delicious... Want the recipe... So forth and so on... The twelfth doesn't like change..."

"So, I win?" Michael smiled brighter.

"Yes... So, umm... Want a job?" Sven asked, turning his disappointment into a small speck of a forced smile.

"Non."

"What?!" Sven asked with wide eyes.

"I said, non... I could never work under ze likes of you. You're rude, discriminative an' you lack respectable class. Good day, Gentlemen." Michael said as he waved his hand in dismissal then walked out of the kitchen leaving both men with dropped mouths and bugged out eyes.

Michael couldn't help but laugh as he looked at all the faces that had turned his way when he reentered the dining area. "Au revoir, my elven friends an' jus' remember one zhing... On zis day, it was a mere human who satisfied your snobbish palates!" He announced before laughing again then walked out.

VvVvVvVvVvVvV


	25. Chapter 25

"Blayze! Vhat are you doing?" Rein asked as he ran over to the other man. "Put ze child down."

Blayze smiled towards Rein, lifting his arm a little higher. "But... He likes it."

"Mein Gott, Sohn... Put him down." Rein said more sternly this time.

The younger man, lowered his hand then literally had to pry the young wolfen off his hand, tearing skin in doing so.

Rein turned on his medipack then aimed the gun at Blayze before pulling the lever. The blue beam shot out, dousing it's patient in it's healing rays, quickly closing up the gash that the child's teeth had created. "You vere petting him like a puppy... Veren't you?" He asked as he shut down his machine.

Blayze lowered his head, nodding. "But... He's so cute."

"No excuse... You vere varned by Caltan. Be happy I vas on mein vey to ze Kennel... Come vith me, sohn." Rein started walking off, trusting Blayze to follow.

"But..."

Rein stopped, turning to look at the younger man. "Vut?"

"I was playin' with them... Their parents went in there for a meeting." Blayze explained, pointing towards one of the buildings that was close to them.

"Oh... Vell... zhen... zhen be careful... Vhen you are done, ze Kennel is right over zhere... Zey have great food." Rein told him then turned to leave again.

Blayze smiled, knowing Rein was only looking out for him. "I will when I'm done... Thanks Dad."

Rein looked back, smiling. "Velcome Sohn." he said before walking towards the restaurant.

"Doc! Great ta see ya again! The boys are driving us nuts." Will was hollering out as he made his way across the dining area.

"Are zhey sick again?" Rein asked confused.

"Oh no... Not sick at all but we told them they weren't allowed outside until you said it was okay... So..."

"Ahh... Maybe I'll check on zhem first zhen... If you don't mind."

"By all means. You know the way up." Will smiled then got back to his customers.

Rein made his way into the kitchen and upstairs. As soon as he opened the door he was attacked.

"Doc! Oh my God! We are so glad to see you. Please, please, pleeeease tell mom and dad we're all better now... Pleeease?!" Jared pleaded at ninety to nothing after attaching himself to Rein's right leg.

"Pleeease." Jacob's small voice sounded down by his left leg.

Rein couldn't help but smile then lifted his chin. "Sit on ze couch und I'll see if you are or aren't." He instructed.

The two boys unhooked their arms and ran towards the couch, jumping up onto it.

Medic walked over, set his bag down then gave them both a check up. He wrote down some notes then looked down at both boys. "I don't know..."

"Come on Doc... Pleeease! We're going nuts in here!" Jared whined.

"Vell... Okay..."

"Yay!" Both boys screamed out then quickly quieted down when Rein lifted a finger.

"I vill tell your parents you are all better now but... You have to finish off ze medicine for ze next few days, listen to vhat zhey tell you und behave."

"We will, Doc... Promise!"

"Very vell..." Rein got up, leaving both boys seated as he made his way back downstairs.

"What's the verdict, Doc?" Will asked as soon as Rein entered the kitchen.

"Zhey are doing much better. I still suggest giving zhem ze medicine until it's gone, jus' to be safe but I zhink zhey can go outside viz ozzers now." He smiled.

"Excellent! Thanks again, Doc. So, you bout ready for dinner?"

"Ja... Sounds great but..."

"But? You turnin' down my food, Doc?" Will asked, cocking his head to the side.

"Nein... Jus' vanting to vait for Mein Sohn... He's babysitting a group of kids while zheir parents are at a meeting." Rein quickly explained, hoping not to offend the wolfen.

"Ahh... Okay then... Well, if ya want, just go out there and sit down at one of the tables... I'll get Jazzy to bring you some tea."

"Danke. I vill do zhat." Rein nodded his head once then proceeded into the dining room. He went over to a table and started taking off the medipack, setting it down beside the table then sat down to where he was facing the door.

"Tea, Doctor Rein?"

Rein looked up and smiled at the woman. "Danke Jazzy... Zhat vould be nice."

"Will told me about the boys check up... Thank you." She said simply, putting down the glass of tea. "Let me know when you're ready to order."

"I vill... Danke again." He replied then watched her walk off to take care of the other customers.

An hour had passed before Blayze entered the Kennel, hoping Rein hadn't left yet. He looked around before spotting said man and quickly made his way to the table. "Sorry... It took longer than I thought it would."

Rein looked up from his notebook that he had been writing in and smiled. "I vas beginning to vunder if you vere coming or not... Have a seat, bitte."

"Oh! This must be your son. Will said you were waiting on him." Jazzy said only seconds after the younger man sat down. "Hi! I'm Jazzy... Me and my husband Will run this place." She told Blayze, a bright, toothy smile gracing her muzzle. "I can see the resemblance."

"Vhat?"

"You and your son... I can see a lot of you in him... You can tell he's your kid."

Rein was about to speak up but decided not to when he saw the smile on Blayze's lips. "Danke Jazzy."

"So, are ya'll ready?"

"Still mooing und baked potato." Rein told her then looked to Blayze.

Tilting his head slightly in confusion, Blayze looked from Rein to Jazzy and back again. "Still mooing?"

"Rare steak... They have dead, double dead and still mooing." He explained to the fire starter.

"Oh... Umm... Dead please... and a baked potato sounds good." Blayze told Jazzy with a smile.

"Butter, sour cream?" She asked them both.

Both men answered in unison, nodding their heads to confirm their decision.

"Alrighty then... What would you like to drink, Blayze?"

"Sweet tea, please."

A slight giggle passed her muzzle before she responded,"I should have known… Like Father like Son. Comin' right up!" Jazzy smiled as she took off towards the kitchen.

"She thinks I'm your son." Blayze smiled, looking over at Rein.

"Vell, you are." Rein stated simply before adding, "You may not be of mein own blood but you're as close as you could get to bein' so und I vould never consider you to be any less zhan mein own flesh und blood at zat, Sohn."

A blush rose on Blayze's cheeks as the words spoken by Medic sunk in. "Thanks Dad." he said softly, a smile ever present on his lips.

Rein smiled in return, enjoying the warm feeling that whelmed up inside of him with Blayze's simple words. "I only speak ze truzh, Sohn."

Once the food arrived, Rein and Blayze enjoyed their meal with relative silence then took their leave after thanking the wolfen couple for the delicious food and went back to their apartment building. They met up with the other three team members and they all headed to Engie's room once again.

"The kids seemed right as rain this morning... They doin' better, Doc?"

"Ja... Zhey are doin' a lot better... I told zheir parents tonight zat zhey can go out und play viz ozzers now. Zhey vere all happy viz zhat... Ze kids vere driving zhem nuts all day." Rein chuckled softly.

"That's good... So Blayze, saw you with an army of kids today... Have fun?"

"Yeah... Was watchin' them while their parents were in a meeting... Oh and the wolfen do bite."

The other four men laughed, Medic piped in once his own resided. "Ja... Zhey do... I had to fix up Blayze on mein vey to give ze boys zheir check-up... Nasty gash it vas..."

"What about you Michael?" What did you end up doin' today? I know it was somethin' cause you've had that smug look to ya."

Michael couldn't help but smile bigger as he told his tale of the restaurant incident, causing the others to start laughing again, imagining the others' expressions as he kindly told them off in his own way.

"Way ta go Dad! That's tellin' 'em!" Eugene hollered excitedly.

"Seems like somebody needed to knock zem down a few notches." Spy said with a smug grin.

"Jus' be careful, Herr Spy."

"I... My dear Docteur... am always careful."

Blayze chuckled at Michael's comment, shaking his head. "Not always..." He mumbled, causing Rein, the only one to hear him, snicker.

The five men continued to discuss their day together until they decided it was finally time to turn in for the night. Each man going to their own rooms respectively.

VvVvVvVvVvVvV


	26. Chapter 26

Life in Greens Burrow seemed to calm down into a regular, comfortable, everyday activity for the five men. Dell had helped Caltan with working on the city's turrets so now it was safe for the townspeople to go outside the city's borders with no fear of being shot at by their own defenses. He also helped with designing others that Caltan could distribute wherever he wished.

Blayze continued to help with the children around the city. Parents seemed to trust him easily with their offspring and the children also seemed to have fun when they were with him.

Eugene also found himself being in a comfortable position in teaching kids and teenagers the fine art of baseball. At first it was more for himself but as they days passed he found out that he actually enjoyed the teaching and coaching more so than just playing the game itself.

Michael was approached about a week after they arrived and was asked if he would help the city by using his spy skills to make sure things were going smoothly, even in the households. Working with the city's enforcers seemed to satisfy him, loving the fact that he was allowed to once again use his watch.

Rein mainly stayed busy with helping Caltan find a cure for the curse that could destroy worlds. The research was tiring but he never complained. He was determined to find it one way or another. People still called on him from time to time when there was a medical emergency but they usually didn't take too long to fix and he would be right back in the workshop until late in the night.

"Herr Caltan..." Rein started off as he approached the other man. "May I have a vord viz you?"

"Sure... Whatcha need Doc?" He asked, turning to look at the older man.

"Zhis plant... Vhere can I find zhis, Cal?" He asked, showing the picture to him. He had learned over their time traveling and being within the city which personality was which without a second thought now. All he had to do was hear the voice pitch.

"Umm... Well Doc... There's only one person I know that could tell ya... You've already met her too but bad news is... She's not in this town." Cal explained then shrugged with a sigh.

"You sister?"

"Yep! Too bad she's not-"

"Hey Guys!"

Both heads quickly spun towards the door, mixed looks of complete surprise and confusion on both.

"What the hell, Sis? How did... Did you learn something new and not tell me? Have you been talkin' to our brother?"

"Umm... No and... What?" Zoe asked confused.

"It's nuzzing... Ve vere just talking about you." Rein explained as he started walking over to the young lady. Holding the book in one hand, he opened his free arm, giving her a quick hug.

"You were?" She asked, hugging him back then looked over at her brother.

"Well yeah... Doc wants to find some plant and I told him the only person I know who might know where it is wasn't here and then BOOM! You're here. How did ya know? What about your town? Who's protecting it? Why are you here?" Cal asked with enthusiastic speed.

Zoe shook her head, trying to keep up with everything that Cal was saying then finally started answering his questions. "I'm here because I got bored and wanted to come visit you and my boys... Ryan has agreed to watch the town while I'm away. He-"

"Wait! What?! Who's Ryan? Can you trust him to actually take care of the whole town?"

"Oh… Umm… Ryan is General Winters and yes, he can."

"You're trusting the General with your town? Are you nuts? And when did he become Ryan? You're on first name basis? What? Is there something going on that I may need to know about?" Cal asked, his eyes wide with shock.

"No... It's nothing like what you might be thinking and as for first name basis… It's been like that for a while but it's usually when it's just he and I talkin' alone. They lost the second paint ball war against us so he said he would do it... And... I trust his word to me... For some ungodly reason..." She chuckled.

"Wait! How do you know what I'm thinking? I'm the psychic, you're not." Cal pointed out, flinging his hands up to emphasize his point.

Zoe went to comment then just closed her mouth and shook her head before turning towards Rein. "Which plant are you looking for?"

"Wait! You can't just stay stuff like that and change the subject. When you two talk alone? How often do you two do that?" Cal interrupted.

"A lot actually… Now, if you don't mind… Rein?" Zoe sighed, rolling her eyes at her brother then turning her attention back to Medic again.

"Zhis vun." Rein answered showing her the picture in the book and it's description.

"Oh... Yeah, I know where abouts it grows... But... Why do you-"

"He's working on some things... Can you show him?" Cal interrupted her question yet again, still trying to hide what was actually going on around there.

"Umm... Sure... Cal? You okay?" Zoe asked, stepping closer to her brother and lifting her hand as if she was about to feel his forehead.

Cal stepped back quickly, holding both hands up. "I'm fine! I'm fine... Look, ya'll can take Samson... I'll go get it ready for ya!" He said before turning around and taking off out the room before anything else could be said.

Zoe stood there for a moment, staring at the door before asking without turning around. "Rein... How long has Cal been out?"

"Vould you like mein opinion or vhat I know?"

"Your opinion."

"By looking around... I'd say... Drei tage."

"Three days... That's not good..." She said quietly then turned to face Rein. "So, how have you been?"

"Fine, fine... Been keeping busy..."

"I can tell... Rein... When's the last time you ate?" She asked, stepping closer to the older man.

"I... Ach Scheiße... I don't know..." He answered honestly.

"Mmm Hmm... Book down..." She took the book out of his hand, marked his place then laid it on the table. "We're going out to eat but first... you need to go shower and get some clean clothes on... I'll wait for ya outside."

"But..."

"No buts... Go."

Rein sighed heavily before walking out to go back to his apartment.

Zoe walked outside, greeting a number of townspeople that she already knew and those who knew her.

"ZOE!"

She turned just in time to feel arms wrap around her, brown fuzzy hair in her face. She giggled as she returned the hug. "Hi Eugene... Miss me?" she chuckled.

"Hell yeah! No offense or anything but this town is awesome! Why not do yours like this one?"

"Umm... Vampire attacks is one good reason... Don't have the resources or defense are two others." She answered as she stepped back to look at him. "You've changed..."

"What? No I haven't."

Zoe smiled as she nodded her head. "Oh yeah you have... You're more grown up now... And.. You need a haircut." She laughed as she ruffled the top of his head.

"Aw man..." He laughed, playfully swatting her hand away. "I know, I know... Dad keeps tellin' me that too... But I like it long."

"Long is one thing... Lookin' like a sheepdog is another... At least get it trimmed up... I feel like I should be tossin' you a bone." She giggled, smiling brightly.

"Ha ha ha.. Very funny. OH! Guess what I've been doin'."

Zoe lifted her finger, tapping her chin as she looked towards the sky. "Umm... Hangin' around the wolfens and the dog boys?"

"No! I mean... Yeah... Uhh..." Eugene paused for a moment to get his thoughts straight then started again. "I've been teachin' the kids and all how to play baseball... At first it was just because I missed it and wanted to play... Now though... I act more like a coach than anything... Especially with the kids." He explained excitedly, showing his pride as well as he puffed out his chest.

Zoe smiled, giving him another hug. "I'm so proud of you... Sounds like you've found your calling."

"My calling?" Eugene asked, confused.

"Yeah... If you make it back to your earth or even doin' it on this one... To teach or coach baseball... You love the game and you want others to be able to share that love. Your calling."

Eugene smiled as he thought about her words, nodding his head. "Yeah... You're right."

"Of course I am." She chuckled, reaching up to ruffle his hair again then quickly moving back before he had time to swat at her again.

"Zoe?"

She turned and smiled as she watched Michael approaching them. "Bonjour, Michael."

"Bonjour Madame." He returned, also smiling. "I'm surprised to see you here."

"Yeah well... I was bored and... well... I was missing you all." She shrugged then opened her arms.

Michael stepped closer giving her a hug then stepped back. "What about your town?"

"Ryan is keeping an eye on things so I can visit."

"Ahh... I see… Who is zis Ryan? Have we met?"

"General Winters and no, you haven't."

Michael raised an eyebrow, glancing over at Eugene who also was sharing the same confused expression.

"Long story… Ya know... I'm waiting on Rein to get down here so we can go eat. You two wanna join?" She asked, looking at them hopeful.

"Yeah!" Eugene exclaimed, perking up at the mention of food.

"Not ze Elf restaurant I hope."

"Oh no no... I was thinkin' The Kennel... Great food." She answered.

"Sounds bien... Let me go freshen up a bit."

"Okay... Try not to take too long... Rein hasn't eaten for a while and it's showing as much... I don't think he's getting much sleep either which worries me also."

"I'll be back before you know it." Michael told her with a slight bow then vanished.

"Now all we need is Blayze and Dell... Know where either one are?"

"Dell's probably in the workshop... I'll go get him... Blayze... Probably babysitting somewhere... Be right back!" Eugene took off towards the workshop, leaving her by herself once again.

She looked up and down the street trying to see if she could catch sight of the fire starter when all of a sudden Cal jumped out in front of her, startling her.

"Got Samson ready! Ya'll ready to go?"

"Cal... No... We're not ready... Actually we're all going out to eat... Wanna join?" She asked.

"Nah... Wait... Where?"

"The Kennel."

Okay! Let's go!" Cal turned about to run off.

"Cal! We're waiting for the others to join first... Well, all but Blayze... Haven't seen him yet..."

"I'll go find him!" Cal took off down the street in search of their missing team member.

Zoe shook her head, sighing heavily before she sat down on the sidewalk, waiting.

"Sorry to keep you vaiting, Fräulein."

"It's okay... We're waiting on the others now too... Come, have a seat." She told him, patting the sidewalk beside her.

Rein took a seat beside her with a sigh.

"Cal said that Samson is ready when we are... But..."

"Samson?"

"The chopper that we're taking... Anyway..." She turned to look at the man beside her, her worry rising at the sight of him. "Rein... How long since you've slept?"

Rein turned his head to look back at her. His eyes were sunk in, surrounded with dark circles. His face pale as if he hadn't seen the sun in years and it also appeared thinner than from the last time she had seen him. "I... I zhink about... Zhree days ago... Maybe four... I don't remember." He answered, his voice soft yet weak sounding.

"Why are you doing this to yourself? You know the dangers of not eating, not sleeping and you've probably been relying on coffee or something like that which is not healthy either..." She sighed, shaking her head as Rein remained silent, lowering his eyes to the ground. "First, you eat... Then you're going to sleep... and don't even try to argue it or I'll take you to the hospital and let them handle it."

Rein looked up at her, somewhat in disbelief until he saw the look in her eyes and he knew she was not exaggerating. "I vill do as you say, Fräulein."

Not long afterwards, everybody else joined the two, including Dell and Blayze, who remained silent when they saw the not-so-pleased expression on Zoe's face. The seven of them walked down the road until they came upon The Kennel then walked inside.

"Oh My Gods! ZOE!"

Zoe couldn't help but smile as the female wolfen came running towards her. "Jazzy!"

The men stood back as Jazzy all but crashed into Zoe, hugging her tight.

"It's been so long! Oh my Gods! It's so good to see you! What have you been up to?! How long are you staying?! You hungry? Come on!" Jazzy yanked Zoe along with her until she came to a table, practically pushing her into a chair.

Zoe laughed, motioning for the guys to join her. "Been doin' the normal... Killin' vampires... Don't know... I'm gonna help Rein track down some plant life he's needing so probably not too long and yes, we're all hungry."

Jazzy cocked her head at the last comment then turned to see the six men standing behind her. "Oh! Oh my! The gang's all here! Oh! Hold on! Will!" She hollered towards the kitchen.

Will ran into the dining room, thinking something was wrong then stopped in his tracks. "Zoe!"

Zoe waved, her smile still beaming bright as he came over to give her a hug. "Nice to see ya, girl."

"Nice to see you too... Hey! Ya think we can get a couple of the tables together here?"

"Already on it!" Cal laughed as he started moving the tables around.

"Cal... Those are round."

"Someone can sit in the middle."

Zoe groaned, shaking her head then looked over at Rein, patting the seat next to her. "Jazzy dear... Can you get us some sweet tea and some rolls? Rein hasn't eaten in the last several days. Maybe a glass of water too?"

"Oh! Of course! I'll be right back!" She hollered as she ran towards the kitchen.

Will looked towards Rein, seeing the sickly hue and shook his head. "Doc, you of all people... Nope... Not gonna lecture ya... Zoe probably already has. I'll get started on the food. Let's see... One, two... Four still mooing, one dead and you two?" He asked looking at Michael and Eugene.

"What?"

"How do you want your steak, Eugene?" Zoe asked as everyone finally took a seat.

"Oh... Umm..." Eugene looked over at Michael, still slightly confused.

"He will want it dead... Moi, still mooing."

"Okay... Five still mooing and two dead. Gotcha."

Before he could walk off, Zoe lightly touched his arm to get his attention. "Salad." She simply said, cutting her eyes to Rein then back to Will. "Please."

He nodded once then walked into the kitchen.

Jazzy came back out a few short moment later, placing the bread down close to Rein then passed out the teas and the water. "I'll go get the salad." She said before hurrying off.

Zoe reached for a roll and placed it in front of Rein. "Eat... Small bites... And drink your water first... Okay?" She urged, lightly rubbing his back.

"Ja... Danke Zoe..." He said softly as he tore bits of the roll off and ate them slowly. He knew she was worried and that's why she was being bossy so he didn't mind doing as she instructed just to make her happy and not worry so much.

"Sis... He's not a baby... Stop treating him li-"

"Like what, Cal? Huh? You wanna know what I find bad about all this? Do ya?" She growled, the fury within her now blazing in her eyes. "For three day... Maybe longer... Nobody! Not one of you... Not One! Noticed how bad he started looking... He's almost as white as me! Do any of you think that's healthy? Do any of you care? I'm not treating him like a baby, Cal..." Her growl more prominent, baring her fangs. "I'm making sure he's being taken care of... He's doing work for you, correct?"

Cal's jaw tightened, his teeth clenched as he glared back at her. "Yes."

"Then _**you**_ should have been keeping an eye on him. He's a man of science... One who will not stop until he finds what answers he's looking for. You should know that type well, _**brother**_." She pointed out then sat back, exhaling loudly. She took a moment and looked around the restaurant, noticing all the wide eyes and paused motions. She opened herself to receive the mixtures of fear, worry, sadness and a tinge of anger before she closed it again and stood up. "Sorry... I'm... Sorry." She said softly then looked over at Rein. "Please eat... And get some rest..." She requested softly then walked away, leaving the others at the restaurant.

Jazzy slowly approached the table, setting a salad in front of Rein. "Here Doc..." She said in almost a whisper then turned to look at the others. "Did any of you want something other than just the steaks?" Her voice soft. She watched the men shake their heads then she sighed. "I was making a strawberry shortcake for dessert... I know it's one of Zoe's favorites..."

"Sounds great, Jazzy." Cal said as he turned his head from the door to look at the wolfen, smiling.

"O-kay..." She said, lifting an eyebrow then looked at the other. "Let me know if you want anything else." She walked off towards the kitchen where Will was still standing at the doorway. "We'll pack it up for her." She whispered to her husband.

He nodded once in understanding then they both disappeared into the kitchen.

The next time Jazzy emerged from the kitchen she was carrying six plates and set them down in front of the men then returned again several minutes later with the strawberry shortcake. She walked back into the kitchen, grabbed a bag off the counter then left the restaurant in search of Zoe. It was easy enough to follow her scent which led her outside the city boundaries.

"Zoe?" Jazzy called softly when she saw her laying on top of her Fury Beetle.

Zoe sat up, looking down guiltily at Jazzy then slid off to walk up to the other woman. "I'm so sorry, Jazzy... I didn't mean t-"

"Stop." Jazzy said, interrupting her. "You don't have to apologize. What you said was right..." She told her with a small smile on her face then held up the bag. "Here... Brought you your steak and I made you a strawberry shortcake... There's a salad in there too..."

"Thanks Jazzy... You're the best." Zoe said as she took the bag and hugged the woman before her.

"Yeah... I know." She giggled causing the other woman to giggle as well.

The two women sat down on the grass and talked as Zoe ate her dinner, catching up on everything that had happened since the last time they had seen each other.

"That was delicious, Jazzy... Tell Will thank you as well."

"I will... You ready to come back?"

Zoe shook her head then looked over at Fluffy. "I think maybe I should go... It was a mistake coming here... I just... After they all left..."

"You missed them..." Jazzy finished, knowingly.

Zoe nodded her head, looking down towards the ground.

"If you didn't come when you did though, what could have happened to Rein? You were meant to be here. Zoe... What is it you always say? Everything happens for a reason... Right?"

She nodded again then looked up at her wolfen friend with a true smile on her lips. "Yeah... Thanks Jazzy."

"No problem girl... Now... Come on." She said as she got up, holding her paw out towards the other female.

Zoe's smile widened as she took the paw and was helped up. She gathered her trash then both women walked back into town.

VvVvVvVvVvVvV

"Danke, Mein Sohn..." Rein said softly as he laid down in his bed, covering up with the blanket.

"Welcome Dad... Do you... Do you think sh-she'll come back?" Blayze asked as he went around, shutting off the lights.

"I hope so..."

Blayze nodded, chewing on his bottom lip. "Me too... Goodnight."

"Guten nacht."

Blayze looked over at his father figure as he reached the last light, noticing that the older man was already asleep. He turned it off then exited the door, locking up the apartment before making his way downstairs. He walked outside, sitting down on the sidewalk.

"He doin' okay?" Dell asked the younger man.

"Yeah... He's asleep."

"Wow! That was quick."

"So... Have ya'll seen her yet?" Blayze asked, chewing on his bottom lip once again.

"Nope. We've been all around town. Scout says Fluffy's still out there. So... She's gotta be somewhere." Dell explained, shrugging his shoulders.

"Ya know, I don't know why she's so mad... Cal's right... He ain't a baby... He knows how ta take care of himself... He's Medic." Eugene said, sitting down on the sidewalk beside Blayze.

"What is ze one zhing she made Cal promise before we left Crusado Haven?"

"Oh... I forgot about that but... Still-"

"Non... She told him to watch her boys an' he did not. Zherefore, he lied to her... Only because he agreed ta do so. She's upset wiz us because... We're supposed ta be a team an'..." Michael looked down, pausing for a moment. "We nearly let one of our own die..."

"Yes... You did."

Heads turned towards Zoe, Blayze and Eugene quickly stood up. She lifted a hand, gesturing for them to stay where they were and sighed.

"I'm sorry for getting so upset earlier... Especially in a public place... Jazzy had to remind me of something... She basically threw my own words in my face... Everything happens for a reason... Rein is the reason I got here when I did."

"That's what Rein always says..." Blayze informed her softly.

"Yeah! Doc's always sayin' that phrase... Especially since we woke up on this earth."

Dell and Michael both nodded their heads, looking over at Zoe.

"Guys... Give me your honest opinion... Did it look like I was treatin' him like a baby?"

"Well... Actually... Yeah, it did." Eugene answered first, looking to the others when nobody else spoke up.

"Oh... I... I must apologize to him as soon as he wakes up... I feel so bad... I do hope I didn't embarrass him." She started rambling, not looking at anyone as she held her hands to the side of her head, looking down. "I'm such a fool... I never meant ta-"

Blayze laid a hand on her shoulder causing her head to jerk up, ripping her out of her thoughts. She looked at the younger man briefly before two arms wrapped around her. A feeling of warmth started surrounding her, causing her to relax. She snuggled more into the hug which seemed to last forever then realized what exactly was going on. She looked up into Blayze's eyes and smiled before laying her head down on his shoulder. "Thank you..." She whispered softly.

After a while he gave her one last squeeze and stepped back.

Zoe looked up at him, tilting her head slightly. "Where did you learn ta use it?"

"From you."

"What?"

"I read your file, remember? Then that with Fluffy an' when you were showing Rein what you could do with empathy... I started thinking... I wasn't sure if I was one or not so... I started practicing..." He explained, again chewing on his bottom lip.

"That's wonderful! But the thing with Fluffy is not because of the empathy… It's because I can also communicate with animals and such. Just... be careful... A lot of emotions can be overwhelming or even real strong, dark emotions can really mess with your mind... Try to stay away from those..."

Blayze nodded in understanding then tilted his head slightly. "Do you think I have that also? The communicating with animals thing?"

"It's very possible." Zoe commented before she started bouncing on her toes, a squeal of delight and her arms flying around his neck was the only quick warnings he had before his senses got bombarded with her excitement and happiness. "Another empath... You... Sorry..." She said finally calming down. "I'm just excited that you're an empath and I'm so proud that you've already got a handle on it. If you have any questions just ask."

Blayze smiled, looking up into her sparking, excited eyes. "Thank you."

"Well... It's getting' kinda late... Maybe we should head ta bed." Dell said with a yawn that soon followed.

"Ya'll have a good night... Sleep well." Zoe told them as she gave each one a hug.

"I take it that you're not going to bed any time soon." Michael assumed, raising an eyebrow.

"Nah... I need to go talk to Cal... Something doesn't feel right... He's acting very odd... Even for Cal... I'll see you guys later." She gave them a final wave before walking towards Caltan's tower.

Upon entering the building, she walked straight to the workshop then inside. She looked around, noticing right off that Cal was not in there but Rein's notes were everywhere. Curiosity got the better of her as she ran her fingers over the numerous notes then finally sat down reading over some of the final result analysis reports as well as possible testing formulas. Most of it seemed a bit far fetched and a little confusing but it didn't stop her from trying to figure out what was going on.

"What are you doing?"

Zoe jumped, dropping the notes back onto the desk and turned around. "Nothing." She smiled brightly.

Cal's eyebrow rose at her answer, crossing his arms over his chest. "Really Sis?"

Zoe bit down on her bottom lip, lowering her eyes before looking back up to meet his eyes. "Cal... What's going on? How long since Caltan's been out?"

"Oh about two... maybe three days."

"Why?"

"Busy, busy been very busy..."

"With what?"

"Umm... Trying to stop the end of the world."

"What?" She asked taken back by his answer.

Cal sighed audibly then started again. "Trying to stop th-"

"I heard you the first time..."

"Then why did you ask what?"

"Cal! Focus... When is this gonna happen?"

"Don't know."

"How is it gonna happen?"

"Don't know."

Her confusion became evident as she shook her head. "How do you know that it's gonna happen?"

"Because I do... Look... I don't know when, where, how or even what time but I do know it's gonna happen..." He explained as he walked over to the desk, looking down at the Medic's notes.

"And how long have you known?"

"For a few months..."

"And I'm just now finding out? What the hell, Cal?"

"Why? All you would do is start worrying about it and then your mind would get all combobulated. Don't worry... I'm working on it."

"With Rein's help? He knew before me?"

"Well... Yeah... He's a man of science... You said that yourself... And... Well... Even if I hadn't of told him he would have found out from Michael after he tricked Core to reveal all our info to him." He explained with a shrug.

Zoe nodded, turning away for a moment to think things over.

Cal saw his chance as he quickly swiped a couple of Rein's notes from the table and quickly placed them in his pocket before she could notice then started pacing the floor.

Zoe turned back around, watching Cal for a moment then took a deep breath and exhaled. "I'll help however I can... Just tell me what you need done."

"Rein is looking for some plants that he believes may have the potential to help in our quest. If you can help him find them then that would be a big help." He explained once he stopped to face her.

"Okay... Let him get some rest first... He's really needing it... And Cal..."

"Yeah?"

"You need to get some rest too. No good making yourself sick. It'll throw your research further back if you end up sick. You know that..."

"Yeah... I know." He sighed. "Okay, okay. I'm goin' ta bed. Night Sis." He said, walking towards the door.

"Goodnight." She returned then sat down again writing out a list from some of the notes then placing it in her pocket before going to her old room to get some rest herself.

VvVvVvVvVvVvV


End file.
